Milwaukee Police present new drone policy to FPC, emphasize safety limits and data retention

The Milwaukee Police Department presented a new standard operating instruction for unmanned aerial systems (UAS) to the Fire and Police Commission on March 20, outlining where and how drones would be deployed and how footage will be stored.

MPD officials told commissioners the program aims to “provide life saving situational awareness that enhances citizen and officer safety,” and described use cases including land and water search and rescue, active‑threat response, event and crowd management, investigative evidence collection and counter‑UAS measures for illegal drone use.

Inspector David Feldmeier, who oversees the patrol bureau, and Sergeant Christopher Boss, who leads MPD’s UAS work, said the department has tested the technology locally and is formalizing policy before expanded deployment. Boss said the department has conducted roughly 250 flights totaling about 55 hours of flight time in pilot testing and training, and that about 60 officers have completed basic pilot training so far. The department said it expects to train additional pilots and build a permanent…