San Francisco Police Unveils Sizzle Reel of Drones Fighting Crime
The San Francisco Police Department has revealed it is using drones to combat crime in the city and that it is working.
Chief of Police William Scott hails the drones as a “game changer” for the city which has become a byword for crime in recent years. Many photographers have been targeted leading to calls for action.
“For the first time in our history, the San Francisco Police Department has drones,” says Scott. “This means our hardworking officers finally have air support after almost two decades without it.”
We're proud of our drone program that has already proved to be an invaluable tool and has led to numerous arrests! We look forward to training more of our officers to be certified drone pilots and expand when and how they are used.
View the full clip ➡️ https://t.co/ElyrUXQPMC pic.twitter.com/GlDzJrRlNz
— San Francisco Police (@SFPD) August 6, 2024
Scott says he can’t overstate just how valuable the drones have been and cited a number of recent examples in which a drone has helped. One instance on July 26 showed two suspects on dirt bikes breaking into cars around the Embarcadero roadway — the exact type of robbery that photographers find themselves victim of. The drone was able to follow the two men and officers arrested them and recovered all the stolen property.
“These are just a few examples of how drones have assisted us in fighting crime,” says Scott.
“Going forward, we will be training more of our officers to be certified drone pilots and explaining when and how they are used.
“We live in the technology capital of the world and I’m very excited that the SFPD can use technology like drones to keep our city safe.”
Not only does the footage help police on the ground but it also helps with prosecutions too. District Attorney Brooke Jenkins tells CBS News the drone footage will help in criminal court cases.
“Jurors in 2024 expect to see what happened. They don’t just want to be told by a police officer what they saw or what their perspective is. They would prefer to have the ability to independently evaluate the evidence in a case,” she says.
“As you just saw, this is going to be key evidence that my prosecutors can use in the courtroom to not only establish for the jury that the correct person was arrested identity-wise but also be able to really convey and demonstrate to them what specific conduct occurred.”
SFPD has been unable to deploy helicopter units since a crash in January 2000 killed two officers.
