On April Fools’ Day, Mantello declared a public safety emergency over license plate reader cameras. The council had let the Flock Safety contract renewal deadline pass while debating privacy protections. Mantello argued the contract had renewed automatically anyway, then declared an emergency to authorize a $78,000 payment without going back to the council or the city auditor.
She called the council’s proposed data regulations “dangerous, misguided and a gift to criminals.” The council eventually reached a compromise requiring annual audits and limits on data sharing with other agencies. By then, Mantello had already gone to court.
Partisan angle: She pulled the emergency trigger precisely when the council was drafting legislation to put guardrails on the technology.
Sources: WAMC, Spectrum News, WAMC compromise