Vallejo police increase use of drones to combat crime
(Stock image)
The Vallejo Police Department on Thursday said it was increasing its use of unmanned aerial vehicles, commonly known as drones, to help with its public safety mission.
The drone team now has five FAA-certified pilots who are capable of operating the unmanned aerial vehicles during emergencies and other incidents.
“As our program evolves, our priority remains streamlining the program and policies to increase transparency and provide our community with a better understanding of drone technology and public safety benefits,” a Vallejo Police Department spokesperson said in a statement.
The drone team was started in late 2017 and has evolved over time. The latest expansion efforts will be conducted after consultation with community leaders and advisory boards, including privacy groups like the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) the police department said.
Years before the drone program was started at the agency, the ACLU issued a report encouraging police departments to limit their use to high-risk criminal incidents with an intent on collecting specific evidence. The activist group said officers should otherwise get a warrant if they want to deploy a drone during an investigation.
The Vallejo Police Department’s drone program seems to track this recommendation: The agency said it might use a drone to help officers who are responding to an active shooter or barricade situation, or when executing a high-risk search warrant on a person or place.
Last month, the police department said it deployed a drone in order to capture a domestic violence suspect who was reportedly armed with a gun. The drone helped officers locate the suspect in an apartment complex, and a gun was recovered from the scene, the agency affirmed.
The police department said community members who are interested in learning more about the agency’s drone program can visit their unmanned aerial vehicle portal on the Vallejo Police Department’s website by clicking or tapping here.
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