South Fulton hosting Flock camera town hall tonight with mayor, state senator and privacy experts

South Fulton's mayor and a Georgia state senator are calling for tighter controls on Flock license plate reader systems, saying police need tools to solve crimes while residents need protection from misuse.

At a Thursday news conference, Mayor Carmalitha Gumbs announced a town hall on the cameras at 6:30 p.m. at the Southwest Arts Center. State Sen. Jaha Howard said he is developing legislation focused on limiting access to license plate data and increasing accountability for those who use it.

"There should be an actual crime. You should be doing a real investigation," Howard said of accessing the data.

Howard said he has spent several months working on draft legislation and gathering input from police chiefs and residents. He said the proposal should include a way to restrict searches and provide transparency about how the information is used.

He also emphasized working across party lines.

"At the end of the day, I don't care whose name is on the bill, I just want it to pass," Howard said. 

Gumbs said she supports keeping the cameras, crediting them with helping police fight crime. But she said residents also deserve protection from anyone who uses the technology unlawfully.

"So I'm very supportive of Flock cameras as long as they're used appropriately," she said.

The town hall will include public safety experts, a Flock government affairs representative and a Georgia Tech professor.