Cambridge canceled its contract with Flock over privacy concerns. Mere days later, those same license-plate readers helped solve one of the region’s most high-profile murders. The rapid shift from skepticism to reliance on the technology raises pivotal questions about balancing civil liberties and public safety.

Federal agents, acting on former President Donald Trump’s orders, are making “dozens” of arrests each day across Washington, D.C. While officials hail an “extraordinary” crime-fighting push, most operational details remain out of public view, leaving residents torn over the expanding federal footprint in their neighborhoods.