Colorado woman falsely accused of package theft sues Flock, says the impact still lingers

Chrisanna Elser says being wrongly accused of a crime has changed the way she moves through her daily life in Colorado. She now finds herself constantly aware of cameras and is careful about her actions in public.

"Always looking around, making sure there's cameras around," Elser said. "I'll walk with my hands kind of like, 'Here, like I'm not touching anything. You can clearly see what is going on.'"

Elser says she is still dealing with the anxiety stemming from an encounter with police last year.

"I'm so blessed that I was not pulled out of a car. I was not taken at gunpoint in front of my children," she said. "But then, also, it's a case of this is something so minute and minor that they would spend this kind of time and effort on, and be completely wrong."

Last year, Sgt. Jamie Milliman with the Columbine Valley Police Department went to Elser's home carrying a theft citation bearing her name. During the encounter, in which she was accused wrongly of stealing a package off someone's porch, Milliman pointed to the town's extensive camera network.

"You know we have cameras in that town," he said. "You can't get a breath of fresh air in or out of that place without us knowing, correct?"

Watch Elser's complete 2025 doorbell camera video showing the encounter with police.

According to the lawsuit, Milliman relied on information from Flock Safety cameras that track vehicles entering and leaving Bow Mar. Elser alleges no other evidence was presented, and that officers refused to consider information that would have cleared her.

At the time, Milliman told Elser he had no doubt she was the suspect.

"It is her. It is 100%," he said. "It is locked in, zero doubt. I wouldn't have come here unless I was 100% sure."

Elser says she later used footage from her own cameras and GPS data to prove she was not involved. 

"Innocent until you're proven guilty, and that was not the case at all," she said.

The reliance on the surveillance technology is now at the center of a civil rights lawsuit filed against the Town of Bow Mar, the Columbine Valley Police Department and Flock Safety.

Civil rights attorney Andy McNulty, who represents Elser, argues the case highlights the need for stronger safeguards governing the use of automated surveillance systems.

"At every step of the line here, it was just an unconstitutional action after unconstitutional action, both from Flock and Bow Mar and from Columbine Valley," McNulty said.

McNulty contends that the technology allows authorities to collect and track location information without sufficient legal protections.

"What could be done to help stop that is Flock could stop conducting the surveillance without a warrant, without probable cause, without any reason to believe anyone has committed a crime," he said. "That's what we're looking to do, is to stop them from capturing these images, capturing people's location as they travel throughout the town, the state, the country without a warrant and in an unconstitutional way."

For Elser, the lawsuit is ultimately about privacy and reclaiming a sense of security.

"They turned a law-abiding citizen into somebody who's now very nervous," she said.

CBS Colorado reached out to officials with the town of Bow Mar and the Columbine Valley Police Department, who declined to comment on pending litigation.

A spokesperson for Flock Safety did respond to CBS Colorado's request. In a statement, they said:

"Flock is an investigative tool used alongside other evidence to help law enforcement solve crimes. As noted in the complaint, the Flock system accurately identified the location of Ms. Elser's vehicle, while law enforcement retained responsibility for interpreting and weighing that information as part of the broader investigation. Flock stands by the accuracy and integrity of its technology and intends to vigorously defend itself in this litigation."

Denver is one of several cities in Colorado that have ended their contract with Flock Safety.