The Dallas Police Department deployed its fleet of drones about 8,000 times in fiscal year 2024. That was reported at Monday's Public Safety Committee meeting.
District 12 Council Member Cara Mendelsohn, who chairs the committee, said she was surprised to see how many times drones had been used in police work.
“I think most people don’t realize how many drones we have and who often [DPD] is using them,” Mendelsohn said during the committee meeting.
Mendelsohn added she believed this type of program “is the future” and applauded the department’s use of the drones to “help extend the [police] force.”
Dallas is facing what some call a police staffing crisis. A recent charter amendment passed by voters will require the city to hire hundreds more police officers.
The department has a fleet of 139 drones. Their movements are captured on a tracker and is required to report some information to state officials. That includes a flight and expense report due every two years.
“That report would include such things as date, time, operational purpose, the timeframe and the location of the flight,” Catrina Shead, an assistant chief with the police department, said during the meeting.
And the department has 156 drone pilots and 186 “visual observers” — a requirement of the Federal Aviation Administration.
Police officials said during the meeting that there are requirements and certain situations where video and images can be recorded by the drones.
The reasons the police can collect that information if the flight involves a felony, “life or death circumstances,” warrant executions — or if consent is given.
The briefing comes after the city announced a different surveillance program in Dallas’ southern sector. Advanced vehicle cameras were added to parts of District 3, according to a press release from Council Member Zarin Gracey.
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