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Cops Are Using Flock to Spy on People for the Crime of Standing Around (theintercept.com)
submitted 5 days ago by to c/technology@lemmy.world
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Police scanned Flock cameras in a single town in Illinois more than 1,200 times to investigate cases of loitering.

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[–] 39 points 4 days ago (10 children)

I remember when I was 14 or something and first looked up what "loitering" meant and I was like... In the US cops can harass you for just being somewhere? Not even private property, just existing on a sidewalk? Still doesn't make sense

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  • [–] 32 points 4 days ago (5 children)

    Mate, the laws are written so that if someone wealthy or powerful doesn't like what you're doing, it's illegal. And if what you're doing isn't illegal, they find something you're doing that is.

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  • [–] 8 points 4 days ago (2 children)

    Coral Gables has laws against carrying "burglar tools" - well, a credit card or even a state issued ID card can be used to open a locked door, so there's a handy "burglar tool" charge just as soon as the cop asks to see your ID.

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  • [–] 7 points 4 days ago

    When the cops in our town were ineffective at keeping the teenagers from loitering in the parking lot of the 24 hour drug store, the retiree busy-bodies got the city council to make the drugstore close at 9pm.

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