As police departments across the country have been under close scrutiny over the past several years, precincts everywhere are pushing new bounds to step up their games. Departments are employing everything from biometrics to social media to help take their towns’ public safety to the next level. Massachusetts is no exception to this trend.
But here in Boston, police are looking to the skies for the next big thing.
On Thursday, an article in The Boston Globe reported that the Boston Police Department is currently considering the use of drone technology to survey crime scenes and assist in other police investigations.
These lofty goals have not gone unchallenged. In July, the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts filed a public records request to learn that the BPD spent $17,500 early this year to purchase three drones and supplemental equipment, though the department has yet to use them. Privacy advocates, the ACLU included, have been very wary about what this could mean for Bostonians, especially if the drone movement gains momentum.
This issue is reminiscent of the debate over police body cameras that swept Boston last year when the BPD began its pilot program with the surveillance technology. There are many parallels to draw between the two — both are relatively new technologies being adopted by police departments in hopes of enhancing public safety. However, that doesn’t mean these things aren’t also putting certain things at risk along the way — namely, people’s privacy.
If the drones are anything like the body cameras, then maybe all it will take is a little time for people to get used to the idea of them being used. After all, people were very on-edge about the use of body cameras at first, but seeing their success in monitoring police work, people have become accustomed to them.
But here’s the thing — drones are not the same kind of technology as body cams. Not even close. When you see a body camera, there is a living, breathing person attached to it. That means that you know exactly whose camera it is, where videos are being taken and what the footage is being used for — and if you don’t, you can ask the person who is wearing it. Besides, body cameras are all about police officers themselves, not necessarily the people they interact with.
Drones on the other hand, turn the camera around, metaphorically. Though physically, body cameras face away from police officers, they are actually looking inwards. The cameras’ widespread use was brought about in response to concerns over police brutality and misconduct — they are there to ensure that police officers are doing their jobs. Drones, on the other hand, would be used to watch the public. Though the drones would probably be focused on monitoring crime scenes and the like, the idea of having them fly overhead, recording people’s every move is still scary, and not just for people who commit crimes.
When you see a drone, it is very likely that you wouldn’t be able tell whether it belonged to police officials or not, especially depending on how high the drone was flying. That’s not something people normally have to worry about when they are dealing with law enforcement. Further, drones aren’t confined by the same physical boundaries that human beings are — the roads or fences or “no trespassing” signs that stop a person from taking footage of someone’s backyard, might not stop a drone from doing the same.
Neither the BPD nor any other officials have suggested the drones will be used this way. In fact, there are no concrete plans for how the drones will be used at all. But that’s of little consequence when the people of Boston don’t know that. The BPD has not been very transparent in their intentions for drone use, and that’s a big mistake. Privacy is incredibly important to the American people, and when those people don’t know whether they’re going to be watched from above, they are going to lose trust in their government.
Drones could absolutely help the police keep our city safer. They could probably help with police work in more ways than we have yet to consider. However, people will not feel safer unless they know exactly how drones will and will not be used, and where the line is drawn. That’s all that really matters: drawing a clear line on the limits of this new technology, and making every effort to ensure Bostonians know where that line is.
The BPD is still in the early stages of developing their plans for drone usage. There are sure to be many more legal debates and community discussions ahead. But the fact of the matter is that people are already scared, though they don’t need to be. The department should have made a statement about the drones when they first bought the technology, and they should be making another one now.
When it comes to integrating new technology into police work, the sky’s the limit — but only when people know what’s in store.
