Police drones could be flying over St. Louis as soon as Friday, under a draft policy that sets firm limits on how the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department can use them. Police Chief Robert Tracy unveiled the draft at a press conference yesterday, and approval at Wednesday’s Board of Police Commissioners meeting looks all but certain.
The draft rules bar the drones from being used for blanket surveillance or for targeting people unfairly. They also require the aircraft to fly with their cameras pointed upward until they reach the scene they were sent to — a safeguard meant to keep the eye in the sky focused on the incident, not on sweeping views of the city below. Supporters say a drone can often reach a crime scene faster than an officer on the ground.
Before the department’s six drones can launch, the policy must be formally approved. Commissioner Sonya Jenkins-Gray had earlier raised concerns about drones flying before rules like these were in place. Mayor Cara Spencer has voiced doubts about the drones and their cost, but she appears likely to be outvoted 4-1 on the police board.
The private Police Foundation was tapped to cover the cost, and some of the drones are already sitting in their docking bays. The department currently has just eight officers certified to fly them, though it is working to train more. The six BRINC drones carry a five-year warranty. Asked whether he worried about someone shooting at the machines, Tracy said the department would simply repair them and get them back in the air.
The fleet could grow from here. The U.S. Department of Justice announced Friday that the St. Louis department was one of just four nationwide to share in $300 million in federal funding, and Tracy said additional drones were among the department’s requests. The city will not know its exact share until U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche visits St. Louis in the coming weeks — but with that large a sum split only four ways, Tracy hinted the check should be substantial. As he put it, there should be some money in there.
