A U.S. Air Force engineer based in Virginia faces 13 felony counts of destruction of property, six counts of petit larceny, and six counts of possession of burglary tools for allegedly damaging 13 Flock cameras in the Suffolk area between April and October 2025. Jeffrey Sovern, 41, was arrested by Suffolk Police in October. Sovern, who has pleaded not guilty, allegedly called Flock camera license plate reader systems “unconstitutional and a violation of his and others’ Fourth Amendment rights.” Air Force Engineer Accused of Cutting Down 13 Police Cameras Says They're Unconstitutional Jeffrey Sovern faces 25 charges after Virginia Police say he destroyed 13 Flock license plate cameras. Supporters are paying his legal bills.https://t.co/NTqpQ1r4DN — Derrick Broze (@DBrozeLiveFree) July 9, 2026 Military.com explained further: A local vandalism case would normally stay local. This one has become a national boiling point in the ever-burgeoning fight over automated license plate readers. Privacy advocates across the country have donated more than $15,000 to Sovern’s legal defense, and his case is unfolding in Hampton Roads—a region that holds one of the largest concentrations of military personnel in the country, as well as more than 600 such cameras. At the late June preliminary hearing, Fifth Judicial District Court Judge Nicole Belote certified all charges to the circuit court, WAVY reported, sending the case toward a possible grand jury indictment and trial. Sovern also faces separate petit larceny charges in Chesapeake, according to WAVY, and was free on bond as of December. Flock Safety builds automated license plate readers, solar-powered cameras that photograph every plate that passes and store the images in a searchable database for 30 days, according to Flock Safety’s evidence policy. The company’s software can also log a vehicle’s make and color, along with identifying features such as bumper stickers. Its network now operates in more than 6,000 communities nationwide. Hampton Roads has embraced the technology at scale. More than 600 Flock cameras operate across the region, including 70 in Suffolk, according to an exhibit filed in a federal lawsuit and reported by WAVY. Police departments credit the readers with helping to solve crimes and deter offenders. Critics argue the cameras amount to a warrantless tracking network that logs the daily movements of ordinary drivers. That argument has already reached a courtroom in neighboring Norfolk, where a federal judge ruled in January that the city’s network of 176 Flock cameras did not violate the Fourth Amendment, finding the system does not track the whole of a person’s movements. The two residents who sued, backed by the Institute for Justice, are appealing. “I appreciate everyone’s right to privacy, enshrined in the fourth amendment. With the local news outlets finding my legal issues and creating a story that is starting to grow, there has been community support for me that I humbly welcome,” a GoFundMe page stated. “I have been charged with allegedly destroying multiple ‘flock’ cameras around the Suffolk, VA area. My support system and I have seen the social media comments of support, and we greatly appreciate the sentiments, as this process has been negative on our mental health to say the least. Seeing multiple comments about a gofundme have encouraged me to create this. This fund is run by myself (Jeff) and with guidance and support from my family, close friends, and lawyer,” it continued. “I have hired a lawyer and incurred some minor costs so far in the process. Those expenses combined are what I have set the goal at for now. There will increased costs as this process continues, but I will not move the bar until increased costs are solidified. Additional legal costs have been added as of the 6 July update. Anything over the goal at this point is to provide as many resources as we can put to bear for court, so we appreciate the continued support! Every dollar will be applied to my legal expenses to defend my rights and vicariously privacy,” it added. Watch below: Suffolk Man Accused of Damaging Flock Cameras said They're 'Unconstitutional'Jeffrey Sovern, a 41-year-old U.S. Air Force engineer and mechanic, told investigators that the Flock Safety cameras he is accused of destroying are “unconstitutional and a violation of his and… pic.twitter.com/nHCol6zP0J — American Crime Stories (@AmericanCrime01) June 28, 2026 Futurism has more: Sovern kicked off the campaign late in December of 2025, where he encouraged his supporters to “reach out to the local governments and demand that these systems are taken down.” The Virginia resident initially set his funding goal to $8,500. As news of his case has spread across the web, the amount of support has far outpaced those already-hopeful aspirations: at the time of writing, Sovern’s legal fund currently stands at $15,440 from over 400 donors. “Thank you to those that had the time to show support this week!” Sovern wrote in a late-June update following a preliminary hearing in the Fifth Judicial District Court. “We have seen a huge uptick in awareness of the system and this case. Continue to do what you can to preserve privacy and roll back the pervasive data infrastructure taking the joie-de-vivre away from enjoying life.” The post “I Appreciate Everyone’s Right To Privacy” – U.S. Air Force Engineer Faces Felony Charges For Allegedly Damaging Flock Cameras appeared first on 100PercentFedUp.com.