Decision Makers:
Damascus Chief of Police
This petition is to respectfully request that the Town of Damascus, Virginia cancel the contract with Flock and remove the Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) cameras in our town. Additionally, we request that no other ALPRs be installed as a replacement.
Damascus, Virginia is affectionately known as “Trail Town USA” and “The Friendliest Town on the Trail”. It is a place where both residents and visitors come to unplug. It is a wonderful place to connect with the close-knit community and the natural beauty that surrounds us.
We trust the Damascus Police Department. However, they do not have control over the data collected nor who has access to it.
1. All the data from these cameras is collected and maintained by private corporations. Flock is often referred to as “Netflix for Stalkers.” Data from ALPRs has led to wrongful arrests, profiling and stalking by ex-partners.
2. There is a concerning amount of data collected from the cameras. Flock is much more than just an ALPR. Flock’s patents (US Patent No. 11,030,892 and US Patent No. 10,795,933) are for "Method and system for capturing and storing significant surveillance images" and "System and method for object based query of video content captured by a dynamic surveillance network".
3. The data collected has a record of not being safely stored. There have been numerous instances of improperly sharing the vast amount of data collected.
4. The presence of these cameras will deter visitors. Many travelers are using websites and applications such as deflock.org , dontgetflocked.com or similar to ensure they avoid these invasive cameras. These tourists will be safe from the cameras in Abingdon, but not in Damascus.
5. There's no substantial evidence that ALPRs effectively prevent crime, nor is Damascus a high crime area.
6. Damascus is the only town in Washington County, Virginia to allow this “dynamic surveillance network”.
7. Numerous other localities have canceled, deactivated or rejected their contract and cameras with Flock. Some of the examples in Virginia include Floyd County, Elkton, Harrisonburg, Staunton, Charlottesville and Warrenton.
8. Lastly, this is an unnecessary expense at a time when our community and businesses are struggling to recover from the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. We would prefer to see our tax dollars invested in our already safe community.
Damascus has been a safe haven for travelers to escape city life and be in nature, away from technology. Here, trust and community go hand-in-hand. Our Damascus Police Department does an outstanding job keeping our community safe. We should not subject our community and visitors to untrustworthy data collection and mass surveillance.
Updates
Victory!
October 8, 2026
We are SO PROUD of the Damascus Town Council and their UNANIMOUS vote to get rid of the Flock cameras in our community! Your voice was heard and our elected officials voted accordingly. This is one example of what we can accomplish when we all work together. A HUGE thank you and congratulations to all who contributed to this goal! Well done, everyone!
October 7, 2026
Today is the day! We look forward to seeing everyone today, Wednesday, October 7th, 2026, at the Damascus Town Hall at 6pm. Please remind your friends, family and neighbors to sign the petition and join you at the meeting! The reason our Town Council is reconsidering these surveillance cameras is because of everyone's signatures, so our presence and comments are important as the Damascus Town Council makes their final decision. If you can't join in person, please email or share your comments directly so they may be read aloud at the meeting. Chief Kermit Turner - [email protected] Mayor Katie Lamb - [email protected] Buddy Albro - [email protected] Jeff Buckley - [email protected] Sammy Campbell - [email protected] Derwin Creech - [email protected] Vice-Mayor Hunter Faust - [email protected] Charles Fields - [email protected]
Meeting Date Change to Wednesday, October 7th!
October 3, 2026
The Damascus Town Council has changed the next meeting date from October 5th to October 7th to accomodate the Washington County School Board meeting on October 5th. Please update your calendars and we look forward to seeing everyone on Wednesday, October 7th at 6pm! https://www.damascus.org/public-notices.html "The October Regular Called Town Council Meeting will be held at Town Hall, 208 West Laurel Avenue, on Wednesday, October 7th, at 6pm. NOTE: This meeting is rescheduled from the first Monday so the Town Council and the public can attend the Washington County School Board meeting on October 5th."
Mark your calendars for Tuesday, October 5th at 6pm!
September 16, 2026
We had a great turnout for the Damascus Town Council meeting on September 8th and they delayed voting on the renewal of the Flock contract until the next Town Council meeting. The Damascus Town Council will be voting whether or not to renew the contract with Flock on Tuesday, October 5th at 6pm at the Damascus Town Hall. If you are able to attend, please do so. There will be an opportunity for public comment at the beginning of the meeting, if you would like to share your perspective. We also learned that your comments can be emailed and read by the Mayor during the meeting. Additionally, you can attend virtually via Zoom if you are not able to attend in person: https://www.damascus.org/public-notices.html Please share this petition on social media and with anyone you think may be interested. Please remind those who wish to sign to verify their signature via email after signing. Also, after signing, the website asks for a donation. It is not necessary to donate. Thank you for being a part of the movement to DeFlock Damascus.
Reached 250 supporters
September 8, 2026
Reached 100 supporters
August 25, 2026
78 Comments
As a town local, I feel the flock cameras are an invasion of everyones personal lives. There is no reason the town needs a constant third party monitoring everyine and everything, as our town does quite a well enough job maintaining the peace ourselves.
Get flock out of Damascus. I’m sure it’s useful for our police on occasion, but they did a fine job every day before that shit was plastered all over town in three locations. They can do it once they’re gone also.
Cameras tracking and logging daily travel patterns of innocent residents and sharing said info with outside entities is unconstitutional and have no business being used in our town.
The flock camera systems are being used and abused in their uses everywhere, especially by police officers that have been using them to track people for their personal reasons. I have listened to several news stories about cops being busted for doing this. This is just another way for us to lose more personal freedoms. We do not need to be under surveillance ALL THE TIME!
My freind Jackson is passionate about these flock cameras I rdc
I vote for less government surveillance.
I live just outside of town and would rather take my business elsewhere because of this unconstitutional surveillance.
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Decision Makers:
Damascus Chief of Police
This petition is to respectfully request that the Town of Damascus, Virginia cancel the contract with Flock and remove the Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) cameras in our town. Additionally, we request that no other ALPRs be installed as a replacement.
Damascus, Virginia is affectionately known as “Trail Town USA” and “The Friendliest Town on the Trail”. It is a place where both residents and visitors come to unplug. It is a wonderful place to connect with the close-knit community and the natural beauty that surrounds us.
We trust the Damascus Police Department. However, they do not have control over the data collected nor who has access to it.
1. All the data from these cameras is collected and maintained by private corporations. Flock is often referred to as “Netflix for Stalkers.” Data from ALPRs has led to wrongful arrests, profiling and stalking by ex-partners.
2. There is a concerning amount of data collected from the cameras. Flock is much more than just an ALPR. Flock’s patents (US Patent No. 11,030,892 and US Patent No. 10,795,933) are for "Method and system for capturing and storing significant surveillance images" and "System and method for object based query of video content captured by a dynamic surveillance network".
3. The data collected has a record of not being safely stored. There have been numerous instances of improperly sharing the vast amount of data collected.
4. The presence of these cameras will deter visitors. Many travelers are using websites and applications such as deflock.org , dontgetflocked.com or similar to ensure they avoid these invasive cameras. These tourists will be safe from the cameras in Abingdon, but not in Damascus.
5. There's no substantial evidence that ALPRs effectively prevent crime, nor is Damascus a high crime area.
6. Damascus is the only town in Washington County, Virginia to allow this “dynamic surveillance network”.
7. Numerous other localities have canceled, deactivated or rejected their contract and cameras with Flock. Some of the examples in Virginia include Floyd County, Elkton, Harrisonburg, Staunton, Charlottesville and Warrenton.
8. Lastly, this is an unnecessary expense at a time when our community and businesses are struggling to recover from the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. We would prefer to see our tax dollars invested in our already safe community.
Damascus has been a safe haven for travelers to escape city life and be in nature, away from technology. Here, trust and community go hand-in-hand. Our Damascus Police Department does an outstanding job keeping our community safe. We should not subject our community and visitors to untrustworthy data collection and mass surveillance.
Updates
Victory!
October 8, 2026
We are SO PROUD of the Damascus Town Council and their UNANIMOUS vote to get rid of the Flock cameras in our community! Your voice was heard and our elected officials voted accordingly. This is one example of what we can accomplish when we all work together. A HUGE thank you and congratulations to all who contributed to this goal! Well done, everyone!
October 7, 2026
Today is the day! We look forward to seeing everyone today, Wednesday, October 7th, 2026, at the Damascus Town Hall at 6pm. Please remind your friends, family and neighbors to sign the petition and join you at the meeting! The reason our Town Council is reconsidering these surveillance cameras is because of everyone's signatures, so our presence and comments are important as the Damascus Town Council makes their final decision. If you can't join in person, please email or share your comments directly so they may be read aloud at the meeting. Chief Kermit Turner - [email protected] Mayor Katie Lamb - [email protected] Buddy Albro - [email protected] Jeff Buckley - [email protected] Sammy Campbell - [email protected] Derwin Creech - [email protected] Vice-Mayor Hunter Faust - [email protected] Charles Fields - [email protected]
Meeting Date Change to Wednesday, October 7th!
October 3, 2026
The Damascus Town Council has changed the next meeting date from October 5th to October 7th to accomodate the Washington County School Board meeting on October 5th. Please update your calendars and we look forward to seeing everyone on Wednesday, October 7th at 6pm! https://www.damascus.org/public-notices.html "The October Regular Called Town Council Meeting will be held at Town Hall, 208 West Laurel Avenue, on Wednesday, October 7th, at 6pm. NOTE: This meeting is rescheduled from the first Monday so the Town Council and the public can attend the Washington County School Board meeting on October 5th."
Mark your calendars for Tuesday, October 5th at 6pm!
September 16, 2026
We had a great turnout for the Damascus Town Council meeting on September 8th and they delayed voting on the renewal of the Flock contract until the next Town Council meeting. The Damascus Town Council will be voting whether or not to renew the contract with Flock on Tuesday, October 5th at 6pm at the Damascus Town Hall. If you are able to attend, please do so. There will be an opportunity for public comment at the beginning of the meeting, if you would like to share your perspective. We also learned that your comments can be emailed and read by the Mayor during the meeting. Additionally, you can attend virtually via Zoom if you are not able to attend in person: https://www.damascus.org/public-notices.html Please share this petition on social media and with anyone you think may be interested. Please remind those who wish to sign to verify their signature via email after signing. Also, after signing, the website asks for a donation. It is not necessary to donate. Thank you for being a part of the movement to DeFlock Damascus.
Reached 250 supporters
September 8, 2026
Reached 100 supporters
August 25, 2026
78 Comments
Corporate surveillance and data mining doesn't make me feel safer. Our town can't afford to scare away visitors while we're still trying to recover from Helene and bring tourists back to Damascus.
As a town local, I feel the flock cameras are an invasion of everyones personal lives. There is no reason the town needs a constant third party monitoring everyine and everything, as our town does quite a well enough job maintaining the peace ourselves.
Get flock out of Damascus. I’m sure it’s useful for our police on occasion, but they did a fine job every day before that shit was plastered all over town in three locations. They can do it once they’re gone also.
Cameras tracking and logging daily travel patterns of innocent residents and sharing said info with outside entities is unconstitutional and have no business being used in our town.
The flock camera systems are being used and abused in their uses everywhere, especially by police officers that have been using them to track people for their personal reasons. I have listened to several news stories about cops being busted for doing this. This is just another way for us to lose more personal freedoms. We do not need to be under surveillance ALL THE TIME!
My freind Jackson is passionate about these flock cameras I rdc
I vote for less government surveillance.
I live just outside of town and would rather take my business elsewhere because of this unconstitutional surveillance.
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Corporate surveillance and data mining doesn't make me feel safer. Our town can't afford to scare away visitors while we're still trying to recover from Helene and bring tourists back to Damascus.