DRONES to be introduced into Denver police to help respond to 911 calls after city defunded the force by millions
The Denver Police Department has launched a new drone program
The DPD would respond to any call for service where someone is physically requesting a police officer on scene. But if there was a fight at Colfax and Cherokee and we put a drone in the air and there is no fight and nothing causing traffic issues, then we would reroute our police officers to other emergent calls.'
'It’s beginning to lift off,' Gonshak said.
'The long-term scope of what we are trying to do is drones as first responders,' he added.
'Basically, having stations on top of each one of our districts so we can respond with drones to critical needs or emergencies that arise throughout the city.'
The Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office, based in Centennial, Colorado, has been using the robotic flying devices since 2017.
'This really is the future of law enforcement at some point, whether we like it or not,' Sgt. Jeremiah Gates, who leads the drone unit at the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office, said.
Robert White, the former of The Denver Police Department originally disagreed with the use of drones in 2013 and in 2018, the agency's only drone was shelved
The Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office has 14 pilots that have used 20 drones to conduct tasks, including tracking fleeing suspects, searching for missing people, providing overhead surveillance during SWAT operations, and mapping crash or crime scenes.
Gates said that the department is now considering using its drones to respond ahead of officers and in some rare instances, instead of them attending at all.
If a drone is deployed before an officer responds to a call, it could map out the area and send live streamed video footage back to the cop before they arrive.
In the case that a drone is flown to the scene of a 911 call, the device will be able to determine the severity of the call to inform officers if they need to respond.
'I could fly the drone over (a reported suspicious vehicle) and say, "Hey, that vehicle is not out of place," and I never had to send an officer over to bother them and I can clear it with that,' Gates said. 'It’s saving resources.'
The Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office is still in the 'very early stages' as they have to consider the cost, public opinion, and determine what kind of equipment will be needed to operate the drones for emergency calls.
Gates said that the flying devices could also be used to respond to traffic light outages by sending a live video to officers.
He added that the remote devices would get to emergency scenes faster than a cop would as they won't have to deal with traffic congestion in the area.
Gates told The Denver Post: 'What if we get a call about someone with a gun, and the drone is able to get overhead and see it’s not a gun before law enforcement ever contacts them?'
The Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office has 14 pilots that have used 20 drones to conduct tasks, including tracking fleeing suspects, searching for missing people and providing overhead surveillance during SWAT operations
While Gates is for the use of drones, American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado staff attorney Laura Moraff, is worried that law enforcement agencies using drones could impact people's rights.
'We’re worried about what it would mean if drones were really just all over the skies in Colorado,' Moraff said.
'We are worried about what that would mean for First Amendment activities, for speech and organizing and protesting — because being surveilled by law enforcement, including by drones, can change the way people speak and protest.'
Moraff also expressed concern that the deployment of drones could result in 'more over-policing'.
'We know there is a problem with people reporting Black people doing normal everyday things as if there is something suspicious going on,' she said.
'So sending out a drone for any time there is a 911 call, it could be dangerous and lead to more over-policing of communities of color.
'There is also just the risk that the more that we normalize having drones in the skies, the more it can really affect behavior on a massive scale, if we are just looking up and seeing drones all over the place, knowing that police are watching us.'
Go paid at the $5 a month level, and we will send you both the PDF and e-Pub versions of “Government” - The Biggest Scam in History… Exposed! and a coupon code for 10% off anything in the Government-Scam.com/Store.
Go paid at the $50 a year level, and we will send you a free paperback edition of Etienne’s book “Government” - The Biggest Scam in History… Exposed! OR a 64GB Liberator flash drive if you live in the US. If you are international, we will give you a $10 credit towards shipping if you agree to pay the remainder.
Support us at the $250 Founding Member Level and get a signed high-resolution hardcover of “Government” + Liberator flash drive + Larken Rose’s The Most Dangerous Superstition + Art of Liberty Foundation Stickers delivered anywhere in the world. Our only option for signed copies besides catching Etienne @ an event.
Shoot those things. So glad we left Coloradical.