This is the WFHB Local News for Monday, April 6th, 2026.

In today’s newscast, WFHB’s Youth Radio speaks with students and coaches of the Binford BadgerBOTs and Tri-North Middle School Robotics who placed third in the state championship. More in today’s feature report.

You’ll also hear Vicki Pierce from Community Kitchen, with a simple mission to feed hungry people. Learn more about fighting food insecurity in Bloomington later in the show on a new episode of Activate!

Bloomington police policy on Flock cameras revised ahead of April 15 city council briefing

By Dave Askins

Before this past Tuesday’s State of the City address, given by Bloomington mayor Kerry Thomson, some residents who opposed to the city’s deployment of Flock Safety cameras distributed flyers outside the Buskirk-Chumley Theater where the speech was delivered.

The cameras, with their automatic license plate readers (ALPRs), are networked with the data collected by other jurisdictions that use the devices. The information can be used by law enforcement agencies to help locate criminal suspects.

But civil liberties advocates warn that the system results in a large database chronicling the movements of ordinary residents, raising concerns about privacy, data retention, and potential misuse.

Inside the theater, during the speech, Thomson gave Flock cameras a mention: “The city is currently reviewing our contract for Flock cameras, and we’ll be presenting our findings on April 15 to the city council, based on their recent resolution.”

From the audience came some applause and shouts calling for Bloomington to end its relationship with Flock: “Cancel the contract!” Thomson continued her speech after recognizing the shouts from the crowd: “I am happy to meet with people and talk to you about your feedback. I have met with several of you.”

The council’s resolution, which was passed on March 4, calls on the mayor to give the council a public briefing on various topics related to the city’s ALPR program within six weeks of the resolution’s passage, which works out to April 15, the date mentioned in Thomson’s speech. There’s also supposed to be a written packet provided by the police department a week ahead of the public briefing. [Added April 4, 2026: Bloomington city council president Isak Asare has told The B Square that the current plan is for the administration to present its written briefing packet by April 15, and for the public briefing to take place during the city council’s April 22 meeting.]

The city’s policies related to use of ALPR have already been modified—in a way that tries to address some of the concerns that have been expressed about use of the data. In response to a records request from The B Square, the city produced the general police order on the use of ALPR systems, which was updated on March 26, 2026. The original general police order on the topic was effective July 23, 2025.

One difference in the updated policy is easy to spot—the exclusion of uses involving investigations into reproductive health and immigration issues:

B. Use of the ALPR System.

The previous policy included a requirement for audits of searches, but the updated policy makes explicit how frequently audits of searches are done

C. Data Storage and Retention

The upcoming briefing of the city council on April 15 comes against the backdrop of a Jan. 30 protest outside city hall, which drew a crowd of hundreds. Part of the context of the mid-April briefing also includes the city’s history of redacting parts of Flock contracts, when providing them in response to records requests, when there was no legitimate legal basis for doing so.

It is not yet clear if the April 15 briefing, which will almost certainly highlight the recent revisions in the policy, might persuade the city council to allow the Flock camera contract to stand, or if the nine elected officials will take steps to sever the city’s connection to Flock. For the council to end the contract, would likely require the council to exercise its fiscal powers—by not funding such contracts.

Early in the public conversation about Fock cameras, Bloomington city council president Isak Asare issued a written statement that included this passage:

My preference is to eliminate our relationship with this technology entirely. The strongest protection for civil liberties is not better settings or better assurances—it is restraint. You cannot misuse data that does not exist. You cannot be compelled to share what you never collected. And you cannot normalize a form of power you have chosen not to build.

MCCSC Robotics Teams Qualifies for VEX World Championship

By Youth Radio

The Binford BadgerBOTs and Tri-North Middle School Robotics team placed 3rd in the state championship and both teams have qualified to compete in the VEX Robotics World Championship.

Members and coaches of the teams spoke to Youth Radio reporters Dat Nguyen and Gloria Chi about the highlights and challenges from this season.

The team is currently raising funds to travel to the VEX World Championship which will be held on April 28th to April 30th in St. Louis, Missouri. More information about the team and their fundraiser is available here: www.btownbots.org/.

Featured Segment:

The mission of Community Kitchen is simple: feed hungry people. This Bloomington nonprofit serves meals to anyone in need, no questions asked, from two brick-and-mortar locations and a mobile food truck. Extra services address the needs of people most vulnerable to food insecurity, like homebound seniors and school-age children. Executive Director Vicki Pierce recently celebrated 22 years on the job at Community Kitchen, and she’s not done yet. Vicki is here to ask for your support for Community Kitchen on a new episode of Activate!, coming your way right now on the WFHB Local News.

Credits: