What Happens If You Vandalize A Flock Camera In North Dakota

Flock Camera Purge Night

I saw a post on one of the Bismarck community social media pages recently titled "Bismarck Flock Camera Purge Night October 31st". Of course it was under some anonymous handle.

More than likely, somebody was just being cute or funny, rather than organizing a real destruction of private property party. However, there's always one idiot who will take it seriously, and that got me thinking. What are the consequences of vandalizing or stealing a Flock Camera in North Dakota?

According to Law Enforcement

I spoke with a law enforcement officer, who asked not to be identified, and told me that most Flock cameras are over $2,000 in dollars in value, and sometimes much higher. Anything stolen or vandalized with that value would make it a Class C felony, which would fall under the Criminal Mischief statute (NDCC 12.1-21-05).

The Consequences of Your Actions

Anything between $2,000 and $10,000 is a Class C felony; this applies to the destruction of a single camera system or its solar-power assembly. This could get you up to 5 years in prison, a fine of up to $10,000, or both.

Anything exceeding $10,000 is a Class B felony, meaning if an individual destroys multiple cameras or target-vandalizes a local cluster of Flock cameras, the combined loss of money will elevate the charge. This carries a maximum penalty of up to 10 years in prison, a fine of up to $20,000, or both.

In addition, if the Flock camera is owned by the city or state, guess who gets to pay for it? Yep, you and I, the taxpayers.

I would skip the Halloween Purge in Bismarck. Believe me, it's not worth it, unless you want to spend the holidays at the state pen. There are better things to do on October 31st.