Pasadena Police Present Draft Drone Policy Responding to Civilian Panel’s Community Priorities

Pasadena police drones could not be armed, equipped with facial recognition or used to help enforce immigration law under a draft policy the Pasadena Police Department is scheduled to present to the Community Police Oversight Commission on Thursday, July 9, in a session that could produce a recommendation to advance it.

The presentation responds to six community priority areas the commission’s ad hoc committee identified in a memo submitted April 22, addressing safety, privacy and civil liberties, purpose and use, evaluation and accountability, data security, and transparency and community benefit.

According to the department’s response summary, the Pasadena Police Department agreed with every priority area the commission raised and stated there were no categorical rejections, though it noted that recommendations would be incorporated with modification or clarification where needed for operational effectiveness.

The department said police drones would not be weaponized and would not be equipped with facial-recognition or other biometric-identification technology.

The draft policy, designated Policy 622, would authorize drone deployment for defined public-safety missions including in-progress crimes, tactical and SWAT operations, crime-scene and traffic-collision documentation, searches for missing or endangered people, and critical-incident and disaster response. The policy expressly prohibits using drones for generalized surveillance, random patrol or roving monitoring, and bars their use to assist with immigration enforcement.

On privacy, the draft would prohibit intentionally recording locations where a person has a reasonable expectation of privacy, absent a warrant or exigent circumstances, and would require operators to minimize incidental capture of bystanders near sensitive locations such as schools and hospitals. Drones could not be used to monitor constitutionally protected speech, assembly or association unless narrowly tailored to a legitimate public-safety purpose.

The draft also would require that a trained Remote Pilot in Command maintain active human oversight of every flight, that operators comply with Federal Aviation Administration requirements, and that all deployments be documented. The department said it would designate a sworn program coordinator, conduct annual reviews, maintain a public-facing website and provide annual reporting consistent with state transparency law.

The item is listed as an action item, meaning commissioners could vote to recommend the policy or request further revisions.

The Community Police Oversight Commission is scheduled to meet at 6 p.m. on Thursday, July 9, in the Council Chambers at Pasadena City Hall, Room S249, in Pasadena. For more information call (626) 744-7311 or visit https://www.cityofpasadena.net/commissions/agendas/.