City Council unanimously adopted “A RESOLUTION APPROVING THE INSTALLATION OF LPR/CAMERAS IN MARYVILLE, TN FOR THE PURPOSE OF PUBLIC SAFETY.”

• Andy White — Mayor. Presided; declared resolution adopted.
• Fred Metz — Vice Mayor. Made the motion to adopt.
• Tommy Hunt — Councilmember. Seconded the motion.
• Drew Miles — Councilmember. Voted in favor.
• Sarah Herron — Councilmember. Absent.
• Greg McClain — City Manager. Present.
• Sherri Phillips — City Recorder. Authorized to transmit certified copy to TDOT.
• Melanie Davis — City Attorney. Approved as to form.
• Tony Jay Crisp — Chief of Police / Director of Public Safety. Primary implementer.
• Lt. Rod M. Fernandez — MPD point of contact with Flock Safety. Arranged March 20, 2024 meeting with Flock rep.

• October 2020: 10 stationary Flock Safety LPR cameras installed at major Alcoa entry points.
• FY 2021–2022: Two additional Flock LPRs added.
• FY 2024–2025: Further cameras added.
• Retention policy: Data held 30 days unless needed for an active investigation.

• Odis Clint Abbott Jr. — Mayor · Vaughn Belcher — Commissioner
• Jim Buchanan — Commissioner · Tracey Cooper — Commissioner
• Tanya Martin — Commissioner · Mark Johnson — City Manager
• Stephanie Coleman — City Attorney · Kim Wade — Assistant City Recorder

A resident group has circulated a public call asking Friendsville citizens to contact their elected officials and request that the Board add the removal of Flock cameras within the city, and a ban on mass surveillance, to a public agenda. Tennessee’s Open Meetings Act requires Friendsville to post meeting agendas at least 48 hours in advance, and residents may address the Board directly (three minutes per speaker, name and address stated for the record).

Open Tennessee Public Records Act targets for Friendsville:

• Whether the City operates, leases, or is evaluating any Flock Safety or other ALPR cameras
• Any contracts, quotes, invoices, or budget lines for ALPR or camera systems
• Any written ALPR use, retention, or access policy
• Any data-sharing arrangement with the Blount County Sheriff’s Office or neighboring city networks

Until these are produced, this section stands as a governing-body and community-action record, not a deployment record.

• August 2020: BCSO sought nine stationary Flock Safety license plate readers, according to a project description submitted to the Blount County Commission.
• Funding source: Project Safe Neighborhood East Tennessee, a U.S. Department of Justice initiative. The total grant request for purchase, installation, maintenance, and operating costs was $47,250.
• NCIC integration: the proposed system would compare scans against National Crime Information Center hot sheets that the project description said were “updated every 24 hours.”
• The regional-hub plan: after installation, BCSO said it would request data from Oak Ridge, Maryville, Alcoa, Lenoir City, and other local agencies using the system.
• The county project description stated: “This will allow for local access to a much larger grid and promotes interoperability.”
• Personnel appearing in the record: the project description was authored by Shankle of BCSO. Public Information Officer Marian O'Briant responded regarding camera placement. Then-Maryville Police Chief Tony Crisp told the Daily Times that Alcoa and the county had been looking at the system since Maryville obtained it.

Blount County Commission, 2022–2026 term, based on the county's published roster. Commissioners marked Budget Committee participate in the committee where county funding proposals are reviewed before reaching the full Commission.

Executive and Program Officials

• James Lee Berrong · Blount County Sheriff. The ALPR program is operated through the Sheriff's Office, and the 2020 project description was submitted during his administration.
• Ed Mitchell · Blount County Mayor, Chief Fiscal Officer, and Budget Committee Chairman during the program's proposal and operation.

The 2020 Commission of Record

The 2018–2022 County Commission was the governing body that received the 2020 BCSO grant proposal. A complete historical roster can identify who was serving at the time, but attributing approval or opposition to individual commissioners requires the actual meeting agenda, minutes, grant resolution, and roll-call vote. Those records should be published before assigning a specific vote to any official.

BCSO directs public-records requests to GovTransfer, a private third-party portal. Tennessee law also recognizes email submission for certain written public-records requests when the agency uses email for official business.

BCSO RECORD REQUEST
│
├── GovTransfer portal
│   ├── account / contact information
│   ├── login credentials
│   ├── uploaded identity documents
│   ├── IP / device / location security monitoring
│   └── request + audit history
│
└── Photo of your ID
    ├── GPS coordinates
    ├── phone / camera model
    ├── date + time taken
    ├── camera / software details
    └── other embedded metadata

Assigning the 2020 grant approval to individual commissioners requires the Commission agenda, meeting minutes, grant resolution, and roll-call vote for the Project Safe Neighborhood application. Those records are not yet published here.

Also outstanding are the county's:

• Current number and locations of ALPR cameras
• Current Flock Safety contracts, renewals, invoices, and funding sources
• Written ALPR use and retention policy
• Agency and user access lists
• Data-sharing agreements with neighboring agencies
• Search and audit logs
• Misuse investigations, complaints, and disciplinary records
• Records showing whether the original nine-camera deployment expanded

These remain active Tennessee Public Records Act targets. If a commissioner opposed the program, requested restrictions, or voted against its funding, the public record should identify that action.

• Tennessee public records show Flock Safety pitched a regional drone-as-first-responder program involving Maryville, Alcoa, Blount County, and the Blount County 911 Center.
• The estimated regional program cost was $300,000 to $600,000 per year.
• The proposal demonstrates how an ALPR network can become the foundation for a broader surveillance system involving cameras, vehicle tracking, real-time intelligence software, and police drones.

• 18 Flock cameras placed around Knoxville (City of Knoxville “City Matters” page).
• Contract expired Dec 31, 2025; cameras turned off Jan 1, 2026.
• KPD plans to transition to Axon ALPR “this summer.”

• $9.4M approved by City Council for KPD tech expansion.
• Plan includes 12 drones + docking stations around the city.
• Package covers drones, body & dash cameras, and Tasers from Axon.
• KPD promised a public dashboard showing drone flight paths, duration, and launch purpose.
• Drones not operational for at least ~6 months; KPD must finalize policies with Axon.

Watch this local news report discussing Knoxville’s transition from Flock to Axon ALPR, the city’s expanding drone program, and the growing surveillance network.

The Axon fususCORE device residents are asked to purchase and plug into their camera systems. Click to enlarge.

• connectknoxvilletn.org asks residents and businesses to register their cameras with KPD (Level 1) and, at Level 2, to purchase a fususCORE device that gives KPD conditional live access to private camera feeds.
• Despite the civic-sounding .org name, the site is Axon-operated: the footer reads “Powered by Axon, ©2026 Axon Enterprise, Inc.” and the contact address is connect@fusus.com.
• Residents pay for the hardware themselves; feeds route to AWS GovCloud into FususONE, the platform behind KPD’s Real Time Information Center.
• AI-enabled CORE devices come “pre-loaded with dozens of search and analysis variables and profiles” that trigger automatic alerts across a designated area.
• The program FAQ claims registry data is “protected non-public data” and not subject to public records disclosure: a database of citizen camera locations the public cannot inspect.

How Connect Knoxville routes private camera feeds into KPD’s real-time platform. Click to enlarge.

What you give up when you connect: no warrant, no probable cause, no judge required for footage you volunteer. Click to enlarge.

🧾 Knoxville Accountability Log — Who Approved These Programs

A) 2026 Drone + Axon Program — Elected Officials

• Mayor: Indya Kincannon
• Council Districts 1–6: Karyn Adams, Nathan Honeycutt, Doug Lloyd, Matthew DeBardelaben, Charles Thomas, Denzel Grant
• At-Large A/B/C: Lynne Fugate, Debbie Helsley, Amelia Parker
• Police Chief: Paul Noel

B) Flock ALPR Procurement (Dec 2020) — Historical Record

• Kenny Miller — Deputy Chief; KPD Flock order-form contact.
• Natalie Reyes — Contract Manager, City Purchasing; managed sole-source letter.
• Penny Owens, Stacey Payne — CC’d on sole-source email thread.

“We will not provide ALPRS images as requested. The justification for withholding these images is Tenn. Code Ann. § 10-7-504(a)(32)… Captured plate data must be treated as confidential and shall not be open for inspection by members of the public.”

• Robbie Fox — Mayor · Mitch Rader — Vice Mayor
• Wayne Helton, Devin Koester, Travis L. McCroskey, Joey Ohman — Aldermen
• Dustin Smith — City Administrator · Lynn McClurg — CFO/City Recorder
• Ed Owens — City Attorney · Joseph Manning — Police Chief

• July 8, 2024 (Res. 7-103-2024): Voted Aye: Mayor Pro Tem Jim Dodson; Councilmembers Derrick Hammond, Charlie Hensley, Chuck Hope, Ellen Smith. Absent: Sean Gleason, Mayor Warren Gooch.
• August 11, 2025: Renewed Flock lease (≤$52,000). Roll call: Mayor Warren Gooch, Mayor Pro Tem Jim Dodson, Councilmembers Sean Gleason, Derrick Hammond, Charlie Hensley, Chuck Hope, Ellen Smith.
• City Manager: Randy Hemann

Under Tenn. Code Ann. § 10-7-503(a)(2)(B), a records custodian must — within 7 business days — provide records, issue a written denial with legal basis, or give a written time estimate. Silence is treated as denial of access and is likely non-compliant with the statute and OORC guidance.

Approved on Consent Agenda, 4–0 vote.

• John Hunter II — Mayor. Presided; present.
• Greg Cox — Vice-Mayor. Voted in favor.
• Jenny Brock — Commissioner. Voted in favor.
• Joe Wise — Commissioner. Voted in favor.
• Todd Fowler — Commissioner. Absent.
• Cathy Ball — City Manager. Present. · Stephanie Laos — City Recorder. Present.

• June 2022: Chief Jessie Brooks presents Flock to council and local media as “extra eyes” for investigations, Amber/Silver alerts, and database hits — not red-light ticketing.
• Flock Quote Q-00234: 10 Falcon ALPRs at $2,500 each = $25,000 recurring, plus $3,500 implementation ($28,500 total before tax); 12-month term starting Aug 26, 2022.
• September 2025: EFF’s Atlas of Surveillance lists 11 Crossville PD Flock ALPRs — one more than quoted, with no published public map explaining the growth.
• Cost trajectory: At quoted rates, cumulative spend reaches roughly $128,500 over five years and $253,500 over ten — before tax, add-ons, or the 11th camera.

• R.J. Crawford — Mayor (term expires 12/3/2026)
• Art Gernt — Mayor Pro-tem / Councilmember
• Mike Turner — Councilmember · Mark Fox, MD — Councilmember
• Jessie Brooks — Chief of Police. Primary implementer; pitched the system in 2022.
• Valerie Hale — City Manager · Baylee Rhea — City Clerk
• Randall A. York — City Attorney
• Greg Wood — City Manager at the time of the 2022 Flock work-session discussion (historical).

Flock Safety is not the only surveillance-equipment vendor operating in East Tennessee. Propel Ops LLC dba Critical Tech Solutions of Knoxville sells mobile surveillance towers, solar surveillance trailers, IP cameras, antenna masts, and rapid-deploy police camera systems to law enforcement, military, and government agencies across the region. According to its corporate website at criticaltechsolutions.com:

• The company markets a no-competitive-bid purchasing path for government agencies under TIPS Contract #230105, advertising “No bid documents, no RFP, no delay.”
• It identifies itself as a 2026 Strategic Alliance Partner of the FBI National Academy Associates.
• It publishes a customer case study titled “Maryville PD’s Rapid Watch Ensures Biker Bash Safety” (December 22, 2023, updated July 8, 2025), describing the Maryville Police Department’s deployment of a Hitch-Mounted RATT mobile surveillance tower during Smoky Mountain Bike Week. The case study quotes Lt. Rod Fernandez.
• Its homepage displays a testimonial section featuring Chief Tony J. Crisp’s name alongside the Maryville Police Department identifier as part of its sales marketing.
• Propel Ops LLC dba Critical Tech Solutions contributed $1,000 to Chief Crisp’s Tennessee House District 8 campaign on February 5, 2026, per filings on OpenTN.org.

The pattern this regional page documents with Flock Safety is not vendor-specific. The same dynamics — direct vendor-to-command-staff communication, marketing use of municipal identifiers, no-competitive-bid procurement pathways — are visible across multiple private vendors operating in East Tennessee.