Drones, facial recognition, and other technology have advanced rapidly, and law enforcement is quickly adopting them. Now in Santa Monica, a drone might be the first to the scene instead of an armed officer. Privacy rights activists are worried about opening the door to drone use and where it might lead.
Sergeant Derek Leone of the Santa Monica Police Department (SMPD) says a drone might be sent to the scene when there is “a call for service or any law enforcement activity … that the officers could benefit from situational awareness and a view from overhead and a quick response.”
He adds, “You can get those eyes in the air for the officers to make them safe, to make the community safe, to make them able to handle the calls with more knowledge as they go out there.”
These drones cannot be armed, he points out, and can’t be used for random surveillance. “You have to follow all the laws regarding expectation of privacy and Fourth Amendment jurisprudence. It doesn't make an exception just because you're in the air.”
Hamid Khan of Stop LAPD Spying Coalition warns of “mission creep,” where technology is used for more than its original purpose. “The Los Angeles Police Department … just started about four or five years ago in 2018 [using drones]. But since then, there have been numerous policy changes where now in this latest budget, the LAPD is proposing that the drones will be used for crowd control. So I think initially we have to be very careful that once we cut through the sensationalism of these new ‘toys’ that are being used, how the mission expands.”
Leone says he understands Kahn’s concerns and agrees that controls should be in place. He emphasizes that SMPD tries to be as transparent as possible, and invites people to come and see the program.