11-16-2024 12:20am

Bowie Police Department uses drones to free up officers' time

The police department, pictured Nov. 14, 2024, is located at Bowie City. Catherine Hollingsworth/The Bowie Sun

The Bowie Police Department hopes to one day follow Montgomery County’s lead by expanding its use of drones as first responders to free up more time for police officers.

“But right now, we’re just trying to supplement, as far as using it as a tool to help officers with everything,” said Cpl. Aaron Saunders, who is also a drone operator with the Bowie Police Department.

Bowie officers use the drones for search and rescue, evidence collection and even at community events where they can share the drone’s capabilities with the public, according to police officials.

Although Montgomery County’s Drone as First Responder program officially launched last year, the use of drones in police departments is not new, and the devices have been used in Bowie for about four years.

All of the Bowie police drone operators are certified through the Federal Aviation Administration so that they know how to safely fly the devices. In addition, the police drones must be registered with the FAA.

When asked about the privacy implications of drones, Saunders said that drones record “anything that we deem is evidentiary value.” If Bowie police respond to a call, he said “we’re not recording it unless it’s required to be recorded.”

Jay Stanley, senior policy analyst for the American Civil Liberties Union, has investigated the use of police drones and the safety implications involved.

“The jury is still out on these programs. I think that policymakers will have to evaluate how much they cost and how much actual good they’re doing,” Stanley said.

While this new technology has its benefits, Stanley stressed the importance of evaluating usage limits, mass surveillance, and cost during a panel conducted in August in response to the drone program in Montgomery County.

The Montgomery County Police Department’s drone program operates on a larger scale, aiding police districts in Silver Spring and Wheaton. It can even deploy drones while a 911 call is in progress. Since the launch of the program in 2023, 1,000 flights have been completed, Montgomery police announced earlier this year.

As a result of those flights, patrol units did not have to be dispatched for 151 calls for service and 305 officers could go back in service and be available to respond to other calls, Montgomery police said in a press release.

The goal is the same in Bowie: to free up officers to respond to emergency situations, instead of sending officers out on every call. Bowie has not yet reached the level of Montgomery County’s Drone as First Responder program.

“The goal is to get the program up and running similar to Montgomery County. Right now it’s just a manpower issue that we have to deal with first,” Saunders said.

The role of drone operator is currently being designated to sworn officers, but may be expanded to civilian employees in the future, according to the Bowie Police Department.

Caitlyn Blake covers Bowie as part of the University of Maryland Local News Network.