Wichita man and Kansas Justice Institute sue over 200-camera Flock license-plate reader network

A Wichita machinist, Mason Grimmett, filed a lawsuit against the city seeking to force removal of automated license-plate readers installed across the city, according to a complaint filed in Sedgwick County District Court. The suit challenges what the plaintiffs describe as a citywide system of roughly 200 Flock devices bolted in public locations and used by the Wichita Police Department.

The case was filed by Grimmett through the Kansas Justice Institute, a group that represents the plaintiff’s constitutional arguments in court. In the complaint, Grimmett contends the city’s deployment and operation of the license-plate readers violates the Kansas Constitution by enabling warrantless surveillance, which he argues amounts to an impermissible broad dragnet rather than targeted law enforcement under judicial oversight.

The lawsuit also frames the technology as an ongoing mechanism that can capture and aggregate information beyond a specific incident, according to the allegations described in the filing. Plaintiffs argue that the network’s scope and location across Wichita effectively changes the constitutional balance for how police gather information in public spaces.

The complaint seeks relief aimed at stopping what it characterizes as unconstitutional collection, and it asserts that the devices should be removed. It does not describe, in the account provided, any alternative remedy such as limiting access, revising retention policies, or requiring case-by-case warrants, though the complaint details those requests and legal theories for the court to evaluate.

The city has not been described in the available reporting with its response or specific legal defenses. In similar disputes, cities and agencies typically argue that license-plate reader systems support public safety goals and rely on lawful collection methods, but the details of Wichita’s position are not included in the reporting provided for this story.

The case is now pending in Sedgwick County District Court, where the parties will proceed with briefing and litigation over whether the deployment and use of the devices as alleged is consistent with Kansas constitutional protections.

The lawsuit adds to an ongoing national debate over how automated surveillance technology is governed, particularly when tools can collect information continuously and at scale. Court resolution will depend on the factual record developed by both sides and the legal standards the district court applies to the claims raised by the plaintiff.