Warrington Wants Automatic Ticketing Cameras in North Plains? Give Us a Break.
If Anna Warrington thinks North Plains is clamoring for automatic camera ticketing machines, she needs to hear from the rest of us.
At the October 5 City Council meeting, Warrington said people on North Street had complained during her reelection campaigning about speeding after local police officers went off duty. She then asked about boxes that could “take pictures and give them a speeding ticket automatically.” Watch the meeting.
The idea that those campaign conversations establish a community appetite for automatic ticketing cameras is absurd. Warrington’s account of what some people told her deserves scrutiny, particularly before anyone presents it as justification for installing cameras in our neighborhoods.
Who asked for camera ticketing? How much support does the idea actually have?
Where is the public discussion with the people who would have to live with it?
TRFNP’s position is clear: We do not want automatic camera ticketing machines in North Plains.
Across the country, residents are challenging government camera networks and the collection of information about their vehicles and movements. Communities are taking those objections seriously.
In Flagstaff, Arizona, the council canceled its Flock Safety contract in December 2025. The city immediately deactivated its system and confirmed in February 2026 that all cameras covered by its contract had been physically removed. City of Flagstaff.
In Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, the council declined to renew its Flock contract in April after a packed meeting where 12 people spoke against the cameras and one supported them. Residents raised concerns about data misuse and access by other agencies. Door County Pulse.
Flock’s license-plate systems collect vehicle information for investigations and offer AI search tools. Speed-ticket cameras serve a different purpose, and Warrington did not identify a Flock or AI product in this exchange. The broader concern is the same public-policy question: How much government camera monitoring are residents willing to accept? Flock’s description of its technology.
Why is Warrington opening that door in North Plains while other communities are working to close it?
The chief’s response provided practical options. He said North Plains did not have the camera equipment and discussed adjusting officer hours, arranging additional coverage for specific problems, and requesting targeted speeding enforcement from Washington County’s motors team. He instead asked for specific times and locations so police could respond to the problems residents were reporting. Meeting recording.
Those patrol options deserve attention. Officers can address speeding, noise complaints, and suspicious activity—the range of concerns the chief described.
Before anyone advances a camera proposal, residents deserve answers about costs, vendors, image storage, access, sharing, mistakes, and accountability. Above all, they deserve a meaningful opportunity to reject it.
A complaint about speeding should never become a blank check for surveillance.
Folks, let Anna Warrington and the City Council hear from you. Speak during public comment. Write to your elected representatives.
Make your position unmistakable:
WE DO NOT WANT AUTOMATIC CAMERA TICKETING MACHINES OR OTHER GOVERNMENT SURVEILLANCE SYSTEMS IN OUR COMMUNITY.
Warrington brought the idea into the council discussion. Now she needs to hear the objections.
