Byron Donalds’ position is a bit more muddled.
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A bipartisan push against surveillance technology is picking up pace in Florida, as it is around the rest of the country, and it looks to be a wedge issue in the race for Governor.
One candidate backs the current Governor’s play. Another one is silent on it. And if you were to guess the party of each, you might be wrong.
In comments exclusive to Florida Politics, Democratic gubernatorial candidate David Jolly says he supports a Special Session to deal with Flock Safety Cameras.
“Shy of a judicial warrant or active crime environment, no data should ever be collected by government cameras on an individual or their movement. It’s clear dramatic reforms or elimination of Flock altogether should be under consideration,” Jolly said Wednesday afternoon.
Jolly had already staked out a position, saying that search warrants should be required before law enforcement can use the data the cameras collect. But he’s taking a stronger stance against the automated license plate reader cameras that have become a subject of great bipartisan backlash this summer.
The Democratic candidate doubled down on his opposition to the devices just hours after Gov. Ron DeSantis expressed his unambiguous opposition to the camera, which he says are “out of control” and engendering a “surveillance state.”
More than 7,500 License Plate Readers are in the state already, and at least 100 law enforcement agencies use the cameras. Cities are wrestling with public opposition to the cameras, which police say help keep the public safe, but which critics contend violate constitutional rights.
The cameras are ubiquitous in communities such as Jacksonville, Gainesville, Orlando, Sanford, Ocala, Miami, Hialeah, Venice, Sarasota, Boynton Beach, Port St. Lucie, Vero Beach, Sebastian, Sanibel, Titusville and the Florida Keys. The Lake County and Seminole County Sheriff’s Offices employ them as well. Law enforcement uses them to track everything from stolen tags and narcotics to immigration status.
Opposition on the federal level is growing, with Senators ranging from Josh Hawley on the right to Bernie Sanders on the left posing questions about the use of artificial intelligence and surveillance to create a national database of people not guilty of crimes but treated as suspects nonetheless.
Yet in the Governor’s race, daylight exists between Jolly and Republican Byron Donalds, who staked out a strong position against the technology but seemed to walk it back after discussing it with law enforcement.
The Naples Republican said if he is elected in November, he will work with law enforcement leadership to set parameters around Flock cameras and related technology.
He previously called for a “full and immediate pause” on the adoption of Flock and similar systems, including floating five years in prison and a $500,000 fine per occurrence for those mishandling the data, but signaled a more gradual approach after a recent conversation with the Florida Sheriffs Association.
“I’m a realist. You have to be able to get that through both the House and Senate in Tallahassee. So what then will happen is you’ll have Sheriffs who’ll come in, and they’ll talk directly to their representatives from their communities. And so you can say whatever you want on the campaign trail, you’ve got to be able to deliver that in policy,” Donalds explained.
We reached out to Donalds’ campaign for comment on Flock Cameras after we published DeSantis’ comments, including asking whether he would support legislation reining them in if elected. We got no response beyond an assurance a spokesperson was checking into it.
Donalds’ schedule on Wednesday included a stop at a diner in Boca Raton, where he did some short-order cooking and highlighted his opposition to tax on tips.
Cameras, along with data centers, look to be issues that Jolly will seek to exploit against his Republican opponent, a move that potentially could attract Republican support given Donalds’ belief that the technology’s advance is inevitable.
“We (have) got a lot of campaigns running around, promising moratoriums and bans when … there ain’t no bans coming,” Donalds said this month about data centers, describing Republican opponents ahead of the Primary.
The post David Jolly calls for Special Session on Flock Cameras, proposes ‘dramatic reforms or elimination’ of the controversial surveillance tech appeared first on Florida Politics – Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government..
