Judge issues tentative ruling in San Jose ALPR suit

SAN JOSE, Calif. - A judge in San Jose issued a tentative ruling in a lawsuit that could shape how automated license plate reader cameras are deployed across the city for years to come.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation, a digital rights advocacy organization, filed the lawsuit in November 2025 to block the city of San Jose from accessing ALPR data without obtaining a search warrant.

The city argued that its network of 500 interconnected ALPR cameras across San Jose functions as standard surveillance cameras and should be legally treated as such. The judge's tentative ruling aligned with the city's position.

However, attorneys for the EFF argue that ALPR technology goes far beyond traditional security cameras, comparing it to digital tracking methods that require higher legal standards.

"The ruling likens these extremely invasive automated license plate reader networks... to simple surveillance cameras," EFF attorney Saira Hussain said. "We think that it is incorrect to analogize it to these simple surveillance camera. So we think it is much more akin to high tech surveillance technology like cell site location information, geo-fence warrants, aerial surveillance, all of which can provide intimate details about a person's life and track their movements."

The EFF contends that searching ALPR databases is similar to tracking cell phone site locations, a practice the U.S. Supreme Court ruled requires a warrant.

The San Jose legal battle coincides with growing scrutiny of license plate reader vendor Flock Safety across the Bay Area.

Municipalities such as Mountain View and El Cerrito, along with Santa Clara County, have canceled or declined to renew their Flock contracts. Mountain View ended its partnership after local police discovered Flock had permitted federal government access to the city's data without prior authorization.

Flock maintains that it does not share data with federal authorities.

"A small number of communities have chosen not to renew their contracts," Flock spokesperson Paris Lewbel said in a prior statement to KTVU. "When a tool that is actively helping solve violent crimes, locate suspects, and find missing people is removed, public safety does not improve – it moves backwards."

The EFF is scheduled to appear in court for a final opportunity to present arguments to the judge before the tentative ruling is finalized.