A Greene County Sheriff's Office lieutenant is facing criminal charges for allegedly misusing Flock automatic license plate reader cameras to track a potential romantic interest.
Jennifer Flood, a lieutenant within the GCSO, is facing four misdemeanor charges for misusing official information in her law enforcement capacity. Automatic license plate reader (ALPR) cameras, like Flock, have faced public criticism recently locally and nationwide due to concerns of lack of oversight for misuse and invasion of privacy. GCSO Public Information Officer Jonah Beadles confirmed to the News-Leader that Flood was "separated from employment and is no longer employed" at GCSO.
According to the probable cause statement, GCSO Captain Marc Staeger was advised
of the possible improper use of Flock surveillance camera network in early October. USA TODAY's Flock Safety Record Search showed "J Flo" searched the same license plate more than 220 times between July 1, 2025, and October 16, 2025. For comparison, most other queries from the GCSO were searched fewer than 100 times.
Staeger, in the probable cause statement, indicates after he completed an audit of Flood's searches, there were a total 236 searches of the same license plate within that time frame. The reasons entered into the system for the searches included "investigation," "stealing," and "suspect." The document notes the person to whom the license plate belongs to, identified as MB, was listed as Flood's friend on Facebook and was not listed as a suspect in any criminal investigation during the timeframe of the searches.
During an interview, Flood told Staeger she met MB when she was working at an off-duty security event and first entered MB's license plate into the Flock system to see if she was involved in any criminal activity. Flood said they continued to communicate, became friends and would flirt.
"Flood stated she continued to enter MB's license plate in FLOCK to see if MB went where she had told her she would be," the document stated. "Flood stated if MB went to work on a specific day, she could see this and described a time when she followed MB through FLOCK as she took a driving trip out of the country."
According to the probable cause, Flood also searched MB using the Missouri Uniform Law Enforcement System, a statewide database connected to federal databases containing privileged and restricted information. The document further notes Flood had also searched MB and MB's ex-girlfriend using NICHE, GCSO's official report, records and intelligence database.
The document notes when Staeger contacted MB, she was not aware of the behavior and wanted to pursue charges.
Each misdemeanor count Flood is facing is punishable with up to a year in jail or up to a $2,000 fine. Her initial court appearance is scheduled for Dec. 14.
In mid-September, Greene County Presiding Commissioner Bob Dixon said at a United Way campaign kickoff that the Interim Sheriff Jason Johnson had decided not to renew the county's contract with Flock. Beadles with the GCSO confirmed the contract ended Sept. 27.
Marta Mieze covers local government at the News-Leader. Have feedback, tips or story ideas? Contact her at mmieze@news-leader.com.
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Greene County lieutenant fired, charged with misusing Flock | Exclusive
