Oxford police lead regional effort to share drones with area police departments
But lesser known was that
CEMLEC, a nonprofit consortium of more than 70 municipal law enforcement agencies and the county sheriff that helps each member through mutual aid, had already been sharing accident reconstruction experts, SWAT and motorcycle team members, canines and other services.
According to the
Its other key features include the addition of spotlights and a "stork" connection system that allows the police to send an object of up to 3 pounds, such as a life vest or bag containing a phone or walkie-talkie, to someone who might be in trouble.
"At least they would have something they can hold onto while the
As for other departments poised to join the team, Officer Gagner of
"As soon as we get a couple more police departments committed and invested, we're ready to go,"
For police to operate a drone, a certificate of authorization from the
The policy is similar to one an airplane pilot would hold, with a
"We've got about
Officer Gagner shared aerial video footage of the three-in-one
Thus, the regional cooperation is vital to local departments,
Sgt. Luce, who helps run
But drones are a good tool when the state helicopter can't come to a scene or is 40 minutes away. In just a few minutes, during
The
"I actually found someone on the trails that we thought was him, but it was just a hiker," said Officer Gagner, who guided police to confront the hiker.
Of note was that in that particular search, the hiker's movements could be viewed on a screen while the subject was in the woods during the daytime, Officer Gagner said.
That's because the camera allows for the use of various color palettes to identify heat signatures, referred to in the industry as "white hot" or "black hot." This is how police track movements.
Conversely,
According to
Civil libertarians have spoken out about Fourth Amendment privacy considerations associated with the use of drones.
Asked to address the issue, Sgt. Luce noted it is "an emerging kind of thing."
He said that
That said, if they're looking for a lost child or conducting surveillance of traffic conditions while flying over homes, Sgt. Luce noted that the
In regard to hobbyists who might operate his drone and take photographs while someone is in her yard, say, sunbathing, Sgt. Luce said police would attempt to identify where the drone came from and forward the information to the
Last year, the president signed a law that would allow federal authorities to shoot down private drones if they are considered a threat.
Sgt. Luce said he's heard the argument that private citizens should be able to shoot drones that are hovering over their homes.
"That's not something that's allowed at all," he said, shaking his head. "You don't own the air space."
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