The surveillance safeguard Katy police cited after a former officer was charged with stalking his ex-wife through Flock cameras did not exist during the months he allegedly misused the system.
Flock Safety's Audit Assistance tool, which automatically flags abnormal search activity for administrator review, launched around early May 2026, Covering Katy News reported. Former Katy police officer Sergio Guadalupe Rodriguez is accused of misusing Flock's license plate reader network to track his ex-wife from Nov. 2, 2024, through April 2, 2025.
That means the safeguard arrived roughly a year after the alleged misuse ended.
Flock announced Aug. 13 that it had introduced Audit Assistance about 16 weeks earlier. The company also introduced an optional case-code requirement for searches in July 2025, again after Rodriguez's alleged misuse period. Both features will become mandatory for all law enforcement customers by the end of 2026, Flock said.
What Katy police said
After Rodriguez was arrested May 4 on stalking and misuse charges, Katy police issued a statement Wednesday, Aug. 26, saying Flock had since implemented a system that monitors abnormal search activity and can trigger automatic lockouts. The department also described its own internal audits: monthly random checks and quarterly reviews of every officer with search privileges, according to the statement reported by ABC13.
The department has not said whether those internal audits were in place during the five months Rodriguez allegedly ran his ex-wife's plate. Internal affairs records obtained by KHOU reportedly show he searched her license plate 2,386 times over 11 months. Covering Katy News has not independently obtained those records.
Rodriguez's ex-wife filed a complaint with Katy police in October 2025, and the department said it immediately opened an investigation. No audit or automated alert has been publicly identified as catching the searches before that complaint.
Charges and case status
Fort Bend County prosecutors charged Rodriguez with stalking and misuse of official information, both third-degree felonies. He was arrested May 4 after warrants were issued. Bail was set at $15,000 on each charge, totaling $30,000. Rodriguez has pleaded not guilty. His attorney is Charles Zavala. Both cases are pending in the 268th Judicial District Court.
Katy's Flock network
Katy City Council first approved a Flock contract in January 2020 for 23 cameras at $46,000 per year. The city expanded to 40 cameras by February 2024. Officers can search a larger shared network beyond those 40 cameras. Then-Police Chief Noe Diaz told council in January 2024 that the system processes about one million license plates per month.
The department has said it will continue using Flock. In its Wednesday, Aug. 26 statement, Katy police called the technology one of the most effective crime-fighting tools in modern policing.
State funding pause
Gov. Greg Abbott ordered all Texas state agencies to pause funding for Flock cameras on Thursday, Aug. 27. The order does not prohibit Katy or other local governments from continuing to use Flock with local or federal dollars. Abbott spokesperson Andrew Mahaleris said most city funding for Flock cameras comes from the federal government, according to Houston Public Media.
Records requests pending
Covering Katy News has filed public records requests with the City of Katy to determine when the department's audit safeguards were implemented and whether any audit flagged Rodriguez's searches before his ex-wife's complaint.
