WASHINGTON COUNTY Ore. (KPTV) – Drones are becoming a very useful and versatile tool used by many law enforcement agencies.
FOX 12 got an inside look at how the Washington County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) uses drones, from navigating long hallways and around corners, to squeezing into tight spots like in cars, and even getting a bird’s eye views of crime scenes.
WCSO’s Public Information Officer and drone pilot, David Huey, says the department uses a drone one way or another every day.
“Even this morning, we had a drone flying for a call we responded to in the Bethany area,” he said.
Huey explains that drones can be used to secure crime scene perimeters, help with search and rescue operations, get photos for crash scene reconstruction, and more.
“The smaller drones, we use them all the time to support our tactical operations,” he said. “If we have something like a trespass or a burglary, we want to send in that small drone first to make sure that the building is clear. Make sure there is not someone inside waiting to ambush police.”
WCSO currently has 13 licensed drone pilots and nearly 30 drones in their fleet. Being such a versatile tool, the drone team has become an integral part of WCSO in helping other specialized units, including the K-9 unit.
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To show off this teamwork, Deputy Huey laid out a track for the K-9 and drone to follow. As the pretend suspect hides more than 100 yards away from the K-9 team, the drone flies hundreds of feet overhead.
“The drone operator is flying ahead of the K-9 team, they are tracking the suspect right now from their vantage point,” Huey explained. “That drone pilot is talking to the K-9 unit saying, ‘hey I have two people on the opposite side of that structure, they are hiding.’ So, they give the K-9 unit a heads up of what they are walking into.”
While this newer technology is useful, it also comes with new concerns.
“Think about bystanders, you could be a neighbor of someone and suddenly there’s a police drone overhead watching what you’re doing in your backyard,” ACLU Oregon’s Policy Council Michael Abrams said. “Or maybe you’re at a protest and there’s a drone flying overhead – you might have no way of knowing that it’s there.”
“Surveillance is the predominant question we get when we use the drones,” Huey said. “‘Are you looking into my back yard?’ ‘What are you looking at?’ stuff like that. But there are very specific rules that we can follow.”
The WCSO is not allowed to use the drones for patrol, they have to have a warrant, they cannot go higher than 400 feet in the air, and they cannot attach any weapons to the drone.
“It’s important for our community to understand what we are using drones for because we want to make sure everyone understands we are following the rules and we are using drones the way they are designed for us to use them under Oregon statutes,” Huey said.
