An elderly man, aged 74, was violently assaulted in what police believe may have been a road rage incident in Centerville, near Cape Cod, Massachusetts. The attack, which occurred on Fuller Road and Marie Ann Terrace on 9 September, has drawn scrutiny to a local decision made days earlier to remove automatic licence plate recognition cameras, with police arguing the technology could have helped identify the suspect.

The suspect is described as a white man, around 30 years old, roughly six feet tall and stocky, who was driving a dark-coloured newer model Volkswagen SUV and may have had a passenger. Just six days before the assault, Barnstable Town Council voted 7-3 to end its contract with Flock Safety and discontinue use of four automated licence plate readers amid residents' privacy concerns. Police Chief Jean Challies and other officials have pushed back, saying the cameras are a valuable investigative tool, while other Massachusetts towns, including Wilmington and Waltham, have also recently scrapped or protested similar surveillance contracts.