Virginia ALPR cameras cover Black neighborhoods at 8x the rate

A January 2026 study by Christopher Newport University found that Black residents in Hampton Roads are far more likely than white residents to live in census tracts with automated license-plate readers. Henrico County and Richmond dropped Flock Safety contracts in October 2026, but the cameras remain and Axon and Motorola are cited as possible replacements.

• ALPR cameras sit in 1 of 2 majority-Black tracts in Virginia Beach versus 5 of 76 majority-white tracts
• Henrico ended its Flock contract on October 6, 2026; Richmond followed four days later
• The densest camera cluster is near Norfolk State University, a historically Black school
• Placement data became public only after a federal court order in November 2025