New York City—Mayor Eric Adams announces that police drones are now patrolling Central Park.
Drone commands have been operating in the 67th, 71st, and 75th police precincts in Brooklyn and the 48th Police Precinct in the Bronx. Adams announced on Nov. 13 that a drone command is now operating in the Central Park Police Precinct.
Drone commands operate 2 drones, which can autonomously fly to the location of certain public safety calls. Situations drones respond to include searches for missing persons, alerts from the ShotSpotter gunshot detection system, and robberies or grand larcenies.
NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Operations Kaz Daughtry said: “Myself and Chief of Patrol John Chell traveled to Chula Vista, California, to observe their drone program. And we had a chance to evaluate their program. And when we left Chula Vista, we made a vow, and we promised to adapt the program and expand it for a city that never sleeps.”
The program that Daughtry spoke of is the Drone as First Responder program, which was created in Chula Vista, California, and has been used there since 2018.
In Central Park, the drones will be doing sky patrols, be on the lookout for issues, and provide information to on-the-ground units. With more than 40 million visitors a year, the Adams administration is focused on safety in the park.
The inclusion of drones into the police arsenal brings major upsides. Drones can be rapidly deployed to assess and locate threats, and police officers can access an aerial view from their phones. Drones can navigate dangerous terrain, such as collapsed buildings.
Adams noted their usefulness in monitoring and policing protests.
“They have played an important part in keeping New Yorkers safe during protests.” Mayor Adams said, “Drones have been able to allow us to see the movement and to police from the sky,” he said.
Other situations that Adams mentioned of the NYPD utilizing drones include on Oct. 12 when a drone was able to guide police officers quickly to an apartment where a child was hanging out the window, drone use in spotting sharks off the city beaches, and when drones where used to search for victims in a collapsed parking garage.
Drones can provide the advantages of a helicopter at a fraction of the price.
At a House hearing in May of the Subcommittee on Emergency Management and Technology and the Subcommittee on Counterterrorism, Law Enforcement, and Intelligence, Daughtry said drones can’t be used for “warrantless surveillance” or “traffic enforcement or immobilizing vehicles of suspects.”
“I want to be clear, this is technology we’re going to use and not abuse. That is why in May of last year, we convened a drone forum in Flushing Meadows, where I asked every city agency to dream big about the way drones can be used with their mission, serving New Yorkers,” Adams said.
