Calgary police ramp up drone program as number of flights reaching new highs
Use of drones in policing raises safety and privacy concerns
The Calgary Police Service has deployed drones 96 times this year as of Nov. 30. That's the same as all of last year but nearly double what CPS deployed in 2021, according to police data.
CPS says it first began operating drones in its traffic section in 2015 for collision reconstruction investigations. It expanded their use to its tactical unit in 2020, and uses drones in its digital unit to provide footage for internal training and both internal and external media content.
The use of drones by police services across Canada is increasingly viewed as a method to gain a top-down perspective on investigations. But there are many who worry about the privacy implications of using such a technology, concerns the police force says it is aware of.
"In all cases, [drone] pilots are adhering to the Canadian Aviation Regulations and Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The safety and privacy of the public is our top priority," CPS wrote in a statement.
CPS says it plans to add a drone co-ordinator role sometime in 2024. That person will be expected to maintain existing programs and integrate new ones.
Drones are expect to serve as a complement to the existing police helicopters, according to CPS. The police service uses DJI Mavic platforms for its operations.
"Advances in technology will allow the CPS to conduct collision scene and crime scene investigations more efficiently and make first response and tactical operations safer for the public and our members," CPS wrote.
Tom Keenan, a professor in the School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape at the University of Calgary and author of Technocreep, The Surrender of Privacy and the Capitalization of Intimacy, took a look at the numbers provided by CPS.
He said it's "certainly legitimate" that most of the flights are for traffic incidents. If a car was about to explode, for instance, one wouldn't want officers to be in danger. Plus, drones are able to capture images from traffic incidents that wouldn't be accessible otherwise.
"But I worry about the category called 'tactical,' because maybe that's flying over protests. Maybe you're identifying people in the protests, or documenting things. And no camera angle is perfect," he said.
Privacy concerns important, says civil liberties group
In the view of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, it gets concerning when drones are used to monitor large-scale events, like demonstrations or protests, says Daniel Konikoff, interim director of the association's privacy, technology and surveillance program.
"The primary issues have to do with transparency. Are people notifying people that they are using drones at the outset, before folks come out to a demonstration?" Konikoff said.
"Are they providing people the opportunity to meaningfully participate, as in, you know that there will be drone surveillance at one of these events?"
There's also the possibility that one may not even be able to make a decision regarding whether they'd like to participate in such an event but not be observed by drone technology.
"So, it can have this trickle-down effect on our freedom of expression and freedom of association," Konikoff said.
"It can have this chilling effect, where perhaps we're less comfortable going out in public and demonstrating our points of view under the fear or concern that we are being watched."
Questions of accountability
When it comes to police and surveillance technology, Keenan, the author of Technocreep, said we need to have a much more evolved view of the landscape.
He cited the U.S. Supreme Court case of Kyllo v. United States. It involved federal agents using a thermal imaging device outside the home of Oregon resident Danny Lee Kyllo, whom they suspected of growing marijuana. That was deemed to be an invasion of Kyllo's privacy under the Fourth Amendment.
"You're not allowed to look into somebody's house. The problem with the drone is, you can look into their backyard, maybe you can look through their windows," Keenan said.
There's a question of accountability, here. Who is keeping the drone footage, and who is checking to see what the drone was used for? Keenan said police forces are still struggling with those questions.
"I think Canadians need to catch up, we need to realize that we can be snooped on," he said.
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