Challenging Government Transparency: College Student Sues Genesee County Over Access to Public Records
A college student from Genesee County is taking legal action against the local government, alleging that they unlawfully denied him access to public records regarding the use of Flock Cameras in the area.
Josh Tewolde, a resident of Genesee County and a student at Kettering University, has a keen interest in automated license plate readers, particularly those manufactured by Flock Safety. He filed a Freedom of Information Act request earlier this year, seeking details about the county’s contract with Flock, the locations of the cameras, access logs, and data scans involving his own vehicle.
According to Tewolde, his intention behind obtaining this information was to make it available to Genesee County residents so they could make informed decisions about the presence of Flock cameras in their community. He expressed concerns about the lack of transparency surrounding the use of these cameras, emphasizing the importance of privacy rights.
Despite Tewolde’s request, the county denied most of the information, arguing that the documents belonged to Flock and were not subject to public records requests. However, Flock publicly states that its customers own the data collected by its cameras, a fact supported by Genesee County’s contract with the company.
Unsatisfied with the county’s response, Tewolde sought legal assistance from Steve Delie, a senior attorney at the Mackinac Center Legal Foundation. Delie and Tewolde filed a complaint in the Genesee County 7th Judicial Circuit Court, contending that even if Flock owns the records, they are still considered public property when in the possession of the government.
Tewolde hopes that the lawsuit will compel Genesee County to release the requested records and spark a larger conversation about government transparency. He believes that taxpayers have the right to know how their money is being used and that government entities should not be able to evade transparency obligations by working with third-party contractors.
As of now, neither Genesee County nor Flock Safety has issued a comment regarding the lawsuit.
