Judge Hands San Jose Win in License Plate Reader Case
The judge said drivers have no reasonable expectation of privacy on public streets and rejected claims that more than 500 cameras enabled illegal searches.
- On Friday, Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey El-Hajj dismissed a lawsuit challenging San Jose's network of nearly 500 Flock Safety automated license plate readers, ruling the system does not violate privacy rights under the California Constitution.
- The American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California and the Electronic Frontier Foundation filed the lawsuit in November 2025 on behalf of groups including SIREN, arguing the city's database creates a 'deeply invasive' mass surveillance system that violates residents' privacy rights.
- Last month, the San Jose Police Department fired an officer for allegedly abusing the Flock database to track a domestic violence accuser, intensifying controversy despite the city's defense of the system's crime-fighting utility.
- Surveillance litigation director Andrew Crocker of the EFF expressed disappointment in the ruling and said all options for next steps are on the table, while San Jose continues defending the technology in a separate federal lawsuit over Fourth Amendment privacy rights.
- Municipalities including Mountain View and Santa Cruz have dropped or restricted their systems, reflecting rising public skepticism, while cities like Oakland and San Francisco maintain their contracts citing crime-fighting benefits.
19 Articles
19 Articles
Hanford Sentinel
Judge dismisses constitutional challenge to San Jose license plate readers
SAN JOSE, Calif. — A judge late last week dismissed a civil rights lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of police scouring images recorded by San Jose’s vast network of automated license plate readers, capping a key legal test for the city’s…
Judge hands San Jose win in license plate reader case – WTOP News
A judge has dismissed a lawsuit challenging San Jose’s network of license plate reader cameras, dealing a legal setback to opponents of a technology used to fight crime that has divided the city’s residents over fears of dragnet surveillance. In a ruling delivered Friday, Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey El-Hajj rejected arguments that...
The Toronto Star
Judge hands San Jose win in license plate reader case
A judge has dismissed a lawsuit challenging San Jose’s network of license plate reader cameras, dealing a legal setback to opponents of a technology used to fight crime that has divided the city’s residents over fears of dragnet surveillance.
Judge hands San Jose win in lawsuit challenging license plate reader network
A judge has dismissed a lawsuit challenging San Jose’s network of license plate reader cameras, dealing a legal setback to opponents of a technology used to fight crime that has divided the city’s residents over fears of dragnet surveillance. In a ruling delivered Friday, Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey El-Hajj rejected arguments that […]
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