The Pasadena Police Department has finished its investigations into former Sergeant Michael Palitz's misuse of Flock camera surveillance. Palitz and another employee resigned before they could face formal discipline, though one individual surrendered their peace officer license to avoid criminal charges.
Tracking a female officer via Flock cameras
The misuse of surveillance technology centered on allegations that Michael Palitz utilized the Flock camera system to monitor the movements of a female police officer. according to Pasadena City Council Member Emmanuel Guerrero, the abuse of the system was eventually detected when the frequency of the searches triggered a red flag due to excessive usage.
Flock cameras are high-speed automated license plate readers (ALPRs) designed to assist law enforcement in locating suspect vehicles. When these tools are diverted from criminal investigations to personal surveillance, it represents a significant breach of trust and a violation of the privacy expectations of both the public and fellow officers within the Pasadena Police Department.
The TCOLE license surrender and Harris County DA's decision
The criminal aspect of the case was handled by the Harris County District Attorney's Office, which reviewed the findings of the Pasadena Police Department. As reported by the source, the District Attorney's Office declined to prosecute one matter but reached an agrement in another, which required the involved individual to surrender their Texas Commission on Law Enforcement (TCOLE) peace officer license.
The surrender of a TCOLE license is a severe professional penalty, effectively barring the individual from servnig as a peace officer in the state of Texas. However, the resolution of these cases through agreements rather than public trials means the full extent of the criminal conduct remains shielded from the public record.
How Texas law shields the administrative probe
A critical detail in this case is the timing of the departures of Michael Palitz and the other involved employee.. Both individuals resigned from the Pasadena Police Department before the internal affairs administrative investigation could be finalized, which meant that no formal disciplinary action was ever recorded on their employment files.
This outcome is compounded by the fact that the administrative investigation remains confidential under Texas law. This creates a transparency gap where the community knows an investigation occurred—as initially reported by FOX 26 in July—but cannot access the specific findings or the internal reasoning behind the department's handling of the misconduct.
The identity of the second unnamed employee
While Michael Palitz has been named as a central figure in the misuse of the Flock system, the identity of the second employee involved remains undisclosed. The Pasadena Police Department has stated it will not issue further public statements because neither individual is currently employed by the agency.
This leaves several questions unanswered: Who was the second officer assisting or participating in the surveillance? Furthermore, why did the Harris County District Attorney's Office decline prosecution in one of the matters? Without the release of the administrative files or further statements from the city,the public is left to wonder if the scope of the surveillance extended beyond a single female officer.
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