At the moment there are many police departments throughout the US and around the world, who have turned to using non-weaponized drones for assisting them with mundane policing duties like surveillance and other tasks. It is estimated that something like 347 different agencies across at least 43 different states, are now using unmanned aerial drones.
And they might be looking to soon implement using weaponized police drones.
It is reported that all but seven remaining states, have at least one unmanned aerial vehicle that is operated by either police, fire departments, emergency response, or sheriffs.
And it isn't just police who are increasingly using them either, as many consumers in the market have taken to adopting the use of drones for occupational purposes and entertainment etc. The drone market is expected to show significant growth in the next few years to come.
Lawmakers in Connecticut are now looking to be the first in the United States to allow their law enforcement agencies to use weaponized drones against the public.
The new legislation which was recently introduced has already been overwhelmingly approved by the state legislature's judiciary committee. The new bill would ban weaponized drones for civilians, but make an exemption for law enforcement agencies.
The bill now heads to the House of Representatives to be considered.
This is alarming for many reasons, one of them being that the accuracy of weaponized drones hasn't proven to be all that accurate in the past. They contribute greatly to increasing collateral damage and there doesn't seem to be any justification for why police departments cannot rely on traditional methods of investigation and policing in order to carry-out their duties; weaponized drones are a bit much.
North Dakota made moves back in 2015 to do the same in allowing police to use weaponized drones but their legislation restricts those drones to only being equipped with weapons like pepper spray and tear gas.
If this new bill in Connecticut's House is successful then it will pass on next to the Senate.
Pics:
Pixabay
Sources:
http://www.newsweek.com/connecticut-drones-police-police-drones-armed-drones-577648
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-04-06/police-love-drones-but-not-the-killer-kind
https://futurism.com/lawmakers-just-introduced-a-bill-to-bring-weaponized-drones-to-life/