Canceled
Who approved this?
No approval document for this contract has been found yet. The records request guide shows which office holds it.
Wellesley police tested a single Flock camera at the intersection of Route 9 East and Route 16 near Elm Park beginning in May 2025. The Swellesley Report said the camera was paid for with asset forfeiture and seized drug prosecution money, and that Police Chief Scott Whittemore had no plan to add more, citing the 2020 Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruling on plate reader mosaics. Whittemore said the department did not share data with immigration authorities or with agencies in states that have banned abortion, and shared within roughly a 200 mile radius. The camera was taken down on August 18, 2026, well before the contract was due to run out, and the chief said he would not deploy more Flock cameras or continue after expiration. Sources disagree on when the agreement was set to end. The Swellesley Report put the scheduled expiration at June 2027, and The Boston Globe reported on August 21, 2026 that the pilot had been scheduled through the end of 2027. No contract end date is given for that reason. No dollar amount, term length in months or retention period is stated in either source, and no Select Board vote authorized or ended the pilot.
Wellesley ended its Flock contract
Contract ended a date pending records.
The money
- Cameras: 1
- Funding source: Asset forfeiture
What happens next
This decision already happened in public; the record and its sources are above. If the community revisits the question, that decision would follow the same public process: a noticed meeting, public comment, and a recorded outcome, all through official channels.
Sources
- The Swellesley Report: Why Wellesley police are testing a Flock license plate reader theswellesleyreport.com
- The Swellesley Report: Wellesley police end Flock license plate reader trial early theswellesleyreport.com
- The Boston Globe: Flock license plate cameras under fire as Massachusetts police misconduct cases mount (August 21, 2026) bostonglobe.com
Last verified: September 8, 2026. Something wrong? Request a correction.
The record
The sources do not say who approved this contract. Wellesley Police Department runs the cameras.
The contract covers 1 cameras. It was paid for via Asset forfeiture and seized money from drug prosecutions, according to The Swellesley Report. No town meeting appropriation or Select Board funding vote is documented..
The contract is now canceled.
3 sources back this record; each is listed with its date under Sources. Last verified September 8, 2026. The Massachusetts hub holds the state records; the tracker holds them all.
Cite this record
Who Approved This, "Wellesley, MA Flock Contract," whoapprovedthis.org, accessed October 8, 2026, https://whoapprovedthis.org/city/ma-wellesley/.
Related
Read on
- Salem, MA Expired
- Cambridge, MA Canceled
- Grafton, MA Canceled
- Camera locations near Wellesley: DeFlock (external, crowdsourced)
- Agency transparency portal, if published: transparency.flocksafety.com; aggregated at Eyes on Flock