Midwest Transparency Audit
Because government operates best in the light.
Lawson, MO Sunshine Request Data
City of Lawson: ALPR Surveillance Infrastructure Audit
This page contains the compiled public records, procurement histories, mapping data, and operational files obtained via Sunshine Law requests from the City of Lawson, Missouri, regarding its Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) program, Flock.
Executive Overview: In early 2026, the City of Lawson entered into a 90-day evaluation agreement for automated vehicular tracking software. While the initial evaluation memorandum was successfully extracted, our follow-up audit reveals that the department ultimately did not operationalize the platform. The city has confirmed in writing that the executed contract served merely as an "introduction," and no surveillance infrastructure was ever actively deployed or utilized by the department, thereby explaining the absence of operational governance policies.
Procurement & Financial Breakdown
The procurement trail documents a reliance on a complimentary trial agreement to access nationwide tracking data, with a distinct lack of long-term fiscal clarity or operational governance.
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The Trial Agreement: On April 21, 2026, Chief of Police Bruce Summa executed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for a 90-day complimentary trial of the "FlockOS® Essentials Tier".
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The Contract Terms: The agreement provided the department temporary access to real-time hotlist alerts and search capabilities across a nationwide network of license plate reader cameras. The contract required zero financial commitment from the city.
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The Automatic Downgrade: The MOU stipulated that upon the expiration of the 90-day trial on July 21, 2026, the department would be automatically downgraded to a restricted "Community Tier," relying solely on localized private devices unless a paid agreement was signed.
The Sunshine Law Battle: Audit Timeline
The documentation traces an effort to secure operational transparency, concluding with a formal admission that the surveillance tools were never actively deployed.
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July 17, 2026: MWTA submitted a formal four-part public records request to the City of Lawson demanding all vendor contracts, inter-agency data-sharing logs, private surveillance access frameworks, and localized usage/auditing policies.
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July 22, 2026 (12:53 PM): Lawson Police Department initially responded by providing a single document: the Flock Software Evaluation MOU, failing to address the remaining three parts of the request.
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July 22, 2026 (3:08 PM): MWTA issued a formal notice of incomplete production, demanding the omitted internal usage policies and private network access agreements, and forcing the department to either produce the records, cite a statutory exemption, or admit in writing that the system was operated without guidelines.
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July 22, 2026 (3:34 PM): Police Department representative Tara Watson formally responded to the objection, explicitly stating that responsive documents for Items #2, #3, and #4 "do not exist". The department confirmed in writing: "We have not implemented or utilized Flock at all".
The Current Status: Closed. The city has officially placed on the public record that despite executing a data-sharing MOU with Flock Safety, the ALPR surveillance network was never deployed or accessed by the Lawson Police Department.