6 Savannah Police employees placed on leave over possible misuse of Flock cameras, mayor says

A half-dozen employees with the Savannah Police Department are under investigation for possibly misusing the city's Flock camera system, Mayor Van Johnson says.

In a Facebook post on Friday, the mayor said that the four officers and two civilian employees have been placed on administrative leave. The department has referred the cases to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation for an independent investigation to see whether charges will be filed. The six individuals are also facing potential disciplinary action, including termination.

"Public trust is non-negotiable. These tools exist to keep our community safe, not for personal or unauthorized use. When concerns were identified, our Department acted swiftly, transparently, and decisively," Johnson wrote. "Accountability is not optional, it is essential to maintaining the confidence our residents place in our police department every day."

The mayor did not share details about the alleged misuse of the Flock Safety License Plate Reader system and did not identify the individuals who are on leave.

Johnson's announcement came the same day as the Habersham County Sheriff's Office announced that they had fired and arrested a deputy after he allegedly accessed its Flock camera system for a non-law enforcement purpose.

In the last two months alone, authorities have announced cases involving three Cherokee County sheriff's deputies, five Albany police officers and three Richmond County officers, and others accused of misusing Georgia's license plate reader databases.