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Police chief seeks additional drones; staff say images alone can’t be used for citations
Summary
Police Chief Eldon told the board the department wants more drones to maintain operational coverage. Staff and the city attorney said current law generally prevents drone or camera images from being the sole basis for a citation; footage can be used to locate violations and then cite on a later date.
The Little Rock Police Department requested approval to add drones to its fleet to ensure coverage when units are down for maintenance. Police Chief Eldon said the department currently operates eight drones that are assigned to different shifts and used for missing-person searches, crash-scene photography and aerial assessments.
"We currently have 8 drones, utilized to the department on our patrol," Chief Eldon said, adding the extra units provide redundancy when aircraft are unavailable. Staff said recent funds left over from another account were being used to purchase additional drones.
Vice Mayor asked whether drones could be used by code enforcement for parking or yard violations. City attorneys and staff advised that state law requires the person who takes a photograph to be the one who issues the ticket, limiting the ability to use drone imagery alone as the basis for a citation. Staff said drone footage can identify problems and enable coordinated enforcement with police and housing, but crews would generally need to follow up in person on another date to issue a citation.
The drone procurement and any policy or coordination for use by code enforcement were placed on the agenda for board consideration on Feb. 3.
