Police chiefs adopt
drone code of conduct
By Stephen Dinan-The
Washington Times Thursday, August 16, 2012
The nation’s police
chiefs have adopted a code of conduct for their use of drones, including
letting any images captured by unmanned aerial vehicles, or UAVs, be open to
inspection by the public, and that the images not be stored unless they are
evidence of a crime or part of an ongoing investigation.
The chiefs also said
that if they plan to fly drones over an area where they are likely to spot
criminal activity and where they would be intruding on someone’s “reasonable
expectations of privacy,” they should seek to get a search warrant first.
In their three-page
document, the chiefs said they are aware of privacy issues that have arisen
with the prospect of an explosion in both governmental and private use of drone
technology.
“Privacy concerns are
an issue that must be dealt with effectively if a law enforcement agency
expects the public to support the use of UAV by their police,” the chiefs said.
The Association for Unmanned
Vehicle Systems International, the industry trade group, applauded the new
rules, saying they struck a good balance.
Here are the eight
operational rules the chiefs recommended:
1. UAV operations
require a Certificate of Authorization (CAO) from the Federal
Aviation Administration (FAA).
A law enforcement agency contemplating the use of UAV should contact the FAA early
in the planning process to determine the requirements for obtaining a COA.
2. UAVs will only be
operated by personnel, both pilots and crew members, who have been trained and
certified in the operation of the system. All agency personnel with UAV
responsibilities, including command officers, will be provided training in the
policies and procedures governing their use.
3. All flights will be
approved by a supervisor and must be for a legitimate public safety mission,
training, or demonstration purposes.
4. All flights will be
documented on a form designed for that purpose and all flight time shall be
accounted for on the form. The reason for the flight and name of the supervisor
approving will also be documented.
5. An authorized
supervisor/administrator will audit flight documentation at regular intervals.
The results of the audit will be documented. Any changes to the flight time
counter will be documented.
6. Unauthorized use of
a UAV will result in strict accountability.
7. Except for those
instances where officer safety could be jeopardized, the agency should consider
using a “Reverse 911” telephone system to alert those living and working in the
vicinity of aircraft operations (if such a system is available). If such a
system is not available, the use of patrol car public address systems should be
considered. This will not only provide a level of safety should the aircraft
make an uncontrolled landing, but citizens may also be able to assist with the
incident.
8. Where there are
specific and articulable grounds to believe that the UA will collect evidence
of criminal wrongdoing and if the UAV will intrude upon reasonable expectations
of privacy, the agency will secure a search warrant prior to conducting the
flight.
