CALIFORNIA · ALPR · PRE-FLOCK

Denise Green shows that the high-risk false-hit problem predates Flock.

False stolen-car alert → guns drawn → handcuffed and detained

San Francisco police stopped Denise Green after an automated license-plate reader incorrectly associated her Lexus with a stolen vehicle. The resulting encounter involved multiple officers, drawn firearms, handcuffing and detention before police determined that her vehicle was not the stolen car.

The case later produced federal appellate litigation, making it useful as a vendor-neutral example: false or insufficiently verified ALPR alerts were producing high-risk stops before today's Flock network existed.

Why it matters: This is not solely a “Flock problem.” It is an operational risk inherent in connecting automated vehicle identification to consequential police action without sufficient verification.

Source: Green v. City and County of San Francisco — Ninth Circuit

WHY THIS LIBRARY EXISTS

This page preserves the anecdote and its caveats separately from the shorter Why Privacy Matters explainer. The goal is to keep the argument readable without hiding the receipts.