Our Reporting On Flock Camera Data Searches For ICE (With Documents)
The Elmwood Park Advocate asked the Village of Elmwood Park for Flock network camera data back in December to confirm whether Elmwood Park was one of many cities that had their data searched by the Border Patrol in violation of Illinois state law.
Initially, Village Clerk Gina Pesko denied the newsletter’s Freedom of Information Act request. After the newsletter asked the Illinois Attorney General’s Office of the Public Access Counselor to review the denial, the village backtracked and provided the records.
Another request for network audit logs was submitted in April, along with requests for related information about the Flock network in Elmwood Park. This time the village diligently provided the information.
Network audit logs contained hundreds of thousands of searches, and only a small portion of the searches were relevant to the subject of this report. Plus, the files were rather large and took a long time to open. The Elmwood Park Advocate created new spreadsheets with relevant data that we are sharing.*
The Elmwood Park Advocate first sought comment from Elmwood Park Police Chief Andrew Hock in April. When a statement that he made did not align with the data that the newsletter obtained, Hock was given more than one opportunity and multiple months to clarify the statement. He chose not to respond to any further questions after initially engaging with the newsletter.
Below is information obtained from the Village of Elmwood Park, along with a copy of emails that were exchanged and sent to the police chief.
US Border Patrol Searches Of Elmwood Park License Plate Reader Data - June 2025
US Border Patrol Searches Of Elmwood Park License Plate Reader Data - July 2025 [Part 1 | Part 2]
US Border Patrol Searches Of Elmwood Park License Plate Reader Data - August 2025 [Part 1 | Part 2]
Police Searches Of Elmwood Park License Plate Reader Data For ICE - February 2025
Police Searches Of Elmwood Park License Plate Reader Data For ICE - March 2025
Police Searches Of Elmwood Park License Plate Reader Data For ICE - April 2025
Police Searches Of Elmwood Park License Plate Reader Data For ICE - June 2025
Police Searches Of Elmwood Park License Plate Reader Data For ICE - July 2025
Email Exchange With Elmwood Park Police Chief On US Border Patrol Searching LPR Data [File]
Elmwood Park Master Services Agreement For Elmwood Park [File]
Elmwood Park Data Sharing Policy [File]