NYPD to deploy drone fleet, stoking fears of Big Brother
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
The nation's largest police department on Tuesday announced that it will soon deploy a newly acquired fleet of 14 drones to assist with emergencies.
And New York police officials went out of their way to assure civil libertarians that the unmanned aerial vehicles would not be used to peer into the lives of everyday New Yorkers.
"Let me be clear," Chief of Department Terence Monahan told reporters, "NYPD drones will not be used for warrantless surveillances."
The department said in a statement the devices would be used for searches and rescues, car crash investigations, crime scene documentation, evidence searches at hard-to-access locales, hazardous materials calls, monitoring crowds at large events, hostage and barricaded-suspect incidents, and "other emergency situations" so long as the chief of department approves.
Police officials Tuesday demonstrated how drones would be used to fly over three situations: a hazardous materials spill, a vehicle collision and a missing person's case.
But civil libertarians and other department critics weren't impressed.
They've long argued that drones in the hands of law enforcement can easily be used to track innocents, especially those who speak out against City Hall and police.
"The NYPD's drone policy places no meaningful restrictions on police deployment of drones in New York City and opens the door to the police department building a permanent archive of drone footage of political activity and intimate private behavior visible only from the sky," New York Civil Liberties Union associate legal director Christopher Dunn said in a statement.
Despite being given the opportunity to provide the NYPD with feedback on its drone program, "We believe the new policy falls far short of what is needed to balance the department’s legitimate law-enforcement needs against the privacy interests of New Yorkers," Dunn said.
In a statement, New York's Legal Aid Society said the drones would only add to the NYPD's "unregulated arsenal of surveillance tools."
"The Department has a history of using powerful technology to unfairly target our clients and communities of color," the statement reads. "Its continued unrestrained expansion will only further sow distrust and increase unequal treatment of our clients. This is a dangerous step towards the further militarization of the NYPD."
Monahan argued that officer safety would be so well served by drones that "it would be negligent for us not to utilize this technology."
"Drone technology will give our cops and their incident commanders an opportunity to see what they are getting into before they go into harm’s way," he said.
Last year the Los Angeles Police Commission approved a pilot program for drone testing by the city's police, but the devices have not yet been deployed as a result of "funding issues," said Officer Tony Im.
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As a New Yorker, I am rather concerned about privacy issues. Although I can see how these drones can be useful, I can also see how they can be abused. There is no way to prove if they will be doing what they say they are doing unless they are tracked and logged and that all surveillance is kept for review.
Still, it feels very "Big Brother" to me. Any thoughts?
Just saw an ad for anti-drone 12 gauge shotgun shells that shoot a weighted net designed to foul the props of drones and bring them down without having to actually destroy them. Sounds like the beginnings of a new sport.
I was in on developing the fledgling sport of paintball back when all we had were bolt-action forest service tree marking pistols.
All you need is a nice 3 to 3.5" magnum, number 3 to 4 pellet shotgun round. Double aught buckshot works very nicely as well if you're a good shot.
Just make sure the camera isn't pointed at you if you choose to bring it down.
Glad you guys take are taking this subject so seriously.
Touching off a shotgun inside the city limits is illegal even when shooting a less-than-lethal net round. Imagine what the cops would do if they caught you shooting down a drone with live rounds in an urban environment (especially if it's one of their drones).
Just one more reason to not live in an urban environment .....
Very distasteful IMO.
Drones are a very scary proposition. Only a matter of time before they are used in some bad way. And by that i don't mean for something like this but to hurt/kill a lot of people.
I wish they were never invented.
there's already stuff available to disable them from a distance if you know where to look
Sadly, many of things we invent have unforeseen outcomes.
That will work great for the military ..... John Q Public? Not so much
I welcome technological invasions of privacy.
It is the only reliable way to communicate with the government.
Letters, emails. faxes, and phone calls get you no where.
Act suspicious.
At that point when under surveillance say, "now that I have your attention, what about the pot hole on my street"?
We may safely assume that if something can be abused, sooner or later (generally sooner) it will be.
Once that genie is out of the bottle, there is no turning back.
Peace and Abundant Blessings to One and All in This Holiday Season.
Enoch, Drone-ing On.
Lol, interesting take.
I'm sure they will get right on that pothole.
Now pay the taxes on that new garden shed ..... toot sweet!
Dear Friend Sparty On: This year was such a barn burner that I sent in a check for taxes before they sent a bill.
If next year is as good as this one I promise to sign that check!
Peace and Abundant Blessings in this Festive Holiday Season to You and Yours.
Enoch.
To you and yours as well brother. And may all your days find such abundant blessing!
Keep that revenue flowing. The taxman loves you for it. Which makes me think of a fine Beatles song written by George Harrison. I give you the Taxman:
There's one for you, nineteen for me
'Cause I'm the taxman, yeah, I'm the taxman
Be thankful I don't take it all
'Cause I'm the taxman, yeah I'm the taxman
If you try to sit, I'll tax your seat.
If you get too cold I'll tax the heat,
If you take a walk, I'll tax your feet.
If you don't want to pay some more
'Cause I'm the taxman, yeah, I'm the taxman
Declare the pennies on your eyes
'Cause I'm the taxman, yeah, I'm the taxman
And you're working for no one but me.
Sorry, we spent all our pothole money on drones.
Dear Friend Tacos: LOL!
Peace and Abundant Blessings in this Festive Holiday Season.
E.
Maybe all these drones can actually get real, live footage of UFOs, Bigfoot, Nessie, etc.....
Of course not! That would be wrong!
But . . .
If they just happen to have the drones up in the air for some search and rescue op, to reconnoiter a potential crime scene, or just monitor the safety of officers in the field, they might review the footage later and decide they see something suspicious. Then they'll obtain a warrant based on the assertion that they saw something that was "in plain view."
I don't trust them
Wise.
I don't trust them. No sir. No way. I live just over 1/2 mile from the border here in El Paso. The blackships used to fly over fairly often a few years back, not so much recently. Anyway, when they were here frequently, cell phone coverage was lost 90% of the time, and yet the guvment said they weren't blocking cell phones. The evidence was against them, no matter how often they repeated the lie. And if you want to call it circumstantial evidence, just remember, plenty of prosecutors are in love with that type of evidence.