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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPresentation - Item 15 - UAS (Drones)Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 1 Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Purchase Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 2 Purpose of the UAS Program •Develop a program that enhances the Department’s service while protecting the Community’s Constitutional Rights •Improves response times •Reduce air support costs associated with the OCSD contract •Provide responding officers with valuable information before they arrive on scene (Enhance Community/Officer Safety) •Support search, rescue, and disaster response Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 3 What a Police Drone Is (and Is Not) •The Drone is: •A real-time observation tool •Used for specific, defined incidents •Operated by trained personnel •The Drone IS NOT: •A surveillance program •Facial recognition •Continuously recording the public •Not Armed Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 4 Authorized Uses •Drones may be used for: •Crime in progress •Missing or at-risk persons •Armed or barricaded subjects •Pursuits •Fireworks (4th of July) •Search and rescue •Fire, disaster, and hazardous incidents •Large-scale incidents requiring an aerial overview Every use must meet policy criteria; no discretionary roaming. Policy Section 606.6.1 (Authorized UAS Flight Types) Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 5 When Drones are NOT Used •Proactive Patrol •Immigration Enforcement •Code Enforcement •Crowd surveillance without a qualifying public safety threat Policy Section 606.7 (Prohibited Use) Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 6 How the Program Works Skydio X-10 DFR •Drone is launched from a fixed location •Live video is monitored by trained personnel •Officers responding to a CFS receive real-time information •Drone is recovered and powered down after an incident Skydio R-10 Drone •Indoor scanning before an officer enters a structure •Deployed directly from patrol vehicles or at the scene of a call Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 7 Skydio X-10 DFR Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 8 Skydio R-10 Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 9 Privacy & Safeguards •No facial recognition technology •No biometric databases •No retention without evidentiary value •Audit logs for all deployments •Access limited to authorized personnel Policy Section 606.2/602.3/606.6/606.6.1 Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 10 Public Portal Example https://cloud.skydio.com/dashboard/LAPD Policy Section 606.10 (Flight Logs and Information) Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 11 Current State of the County •Agencies within OC that utilize Drones as a First Responder (DFR): •Newport Beach PD •Brea PD •Huntington Beach PD •Irvine PD •Four agencies in OC do not have an in-house drone capability •Los Alamitos PD •Cypress PD •La Palma PD •Santa Ana PD Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 12 DFR Outcomes •Ontario PD: •DFR responds to 160 CFS per week •DFR arrived first 80% of the time •40% of calls cleared via drone without officer response •Lakewood (CO) PD (3-month period) •DFR responded to 640 CFS •DRF arrived first 77% of the time •40% of calls cleared via drone without officer response •Chula Vista PD: •DFR has responded to 24,090 CFS since 2015 •DFR arrived first 70% of the time •20% of calls cleared via drone without officer response ***None of the agencies listed above have received community complaints regarding their drone uses*** Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 13 Drone Use in Santa Ana •Beginning in 2020, drones were provided by outside assisting agencies. •Orange County Sheriff’s Department •Irvine PD •Tustin PD •Garden Grove PD •Anaheim PD •Orange County District Attorney’s Office •Notable incidents where drones were used •Civil Unrest 2020 (Limited Use) •Nov 2021, Stand off with a stolen big rig on the 55 Fwy, Irvine drone utilized to monitor suspect’s actions •Feb 2023, a drone was used to find a suspect inside a tunnel after a pursuit •Aug 2023, suspect armed with a handgun at 17 th / Tustin. Drone overhead provided valuable intel for tactical planning. Successful surrender after 11 hours. •Jan 2026, Drone utilized to monitor a protest at 34 Civic Center. Based on drone footage, no SAPD officers were deployed to the protest. Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 14 Approval Request Three (3) Skydio X-10s with Docking Stations •Each dock will be strategically located throughout the City to provide maximum coverage •Because the City owns the buildings and their strategic locations, the plan is to utilize fire station rooftops to house the docking stations •Remote pilots will be housed at the Police Administrative Building in a room next to our Communications Center Two (2) Skydio R-10 drones •One will be patrol-based, while the other will be reserved for the Special Weapons and Tactics Team •12” by 12” drone capable of flying in confined exterior or interior spaces Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 15 Community Input •Between August 2025 and January 2026, the PD has attended eight (8) community meetings where drones were a topic of discussion: August 21, 2025 –Artesia Pilar Neighborhood Association Meeting (El Salvador Park) August 31, 2025 –Community Meeting at 1518 N. French Street September 20, 2025 –Coffee with the Mayor (McDonald’s, 1011 E. 17th Street) September 26, 2025 –Community Meeting at 249 N. Bush Street October 1, 2025 –Coffee with a Cop (Norms on 17th Street) October 22, 2025 –Saddleback View and Zoo Neighborhood Association Meeting (Reach Academy) November 20, 2025 –Com-Link meeting January 9, 2025 –G7 meeting Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 16 Community Response •Residents interested in the responsible and transparent use of drone technology, but expressed the following concerns: •Privacy •“Mission creep,” leading to mass, suspicion-less surveillance •Capture and storage of data •Transparency •Accountability We address these concerns within Policy 606 Policy Section 606.7 (Prohibited Use) Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 17 Next Steps •Obtain Council Approval for the purchase •Installation of docking stations •Selection of pilots •Pilot training •Obtain FAA BVLOS waiver •Full program implementation Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 18 Questions? Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 19 Policy Excerpts Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 20 Privacy Policy Section 606.2 states: •“…All UAS applications will obey Federal, State, and City laws, and shall respect Constitutional rights, privacy rights, search and seizure regulations…” Policy Section 606.3 states: •“Operators and observers shall not intentionally record or transmit images of any location where a person would have a reasonable expectation of privacy and shall take reasonable precautions to avoid inadvertent recording or transmitting images of areas where there is a reasonable expectation of privacy.” Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 21 Privacy Cont… Policy Section 606.6 states: •“Use of vision enhancement technology… is permissible in viewing areas only where there is no protectable privacy interest or when in compliance with a search warrant or court order.” Policy Section 606.6.1 states: •“When the UAS is being flown pursuant to any of the authorized uses above, onboard cameras will be directed away from occupied structures as feasible, or the recording function will be disabled to minimize the inadvertent capture of video or still images of uninvolved persons.” Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 22 “Mission Creep” Policy Section 606.7 (Prohibited Use) states: •The UAS video surveillance equipment shall not be used: •To conduct random surveillance activities. •To target a person based solely on actual or perceived characteristics, such as race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, economic status, age, cultural group, or disability. •To harass, intimidate, or discriminate against any individual or group. •To conduct personal business of any type. •The UAS shall not be equipped with any device or platform capable of employing lethal force. •Notwithstanding the authorized or prohibited uses above, the Bureau Commander or their designee must approve any other use of the UAS not expressly provided for in this Policy. Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 23 Authorized Uses Policy Section 606.6.1 (Authorized UAS Flight Types) states: •Incident documentation/diagramming •Field operations support •Investigative support •Searches for missing persons •Search and rescue •Explosive device investigation support •Illegal fireworks deterrence and enforcement •Firefighting/Investigation support •Tactical operation support •Disaster/mass casualty response support •Event planning and management •Training: This policy authorizes the use of the UAS for regular and ongoing training is required for all UAS Unit personnel who perform in the role of UAS Pilot. •Drone as a First Responder •Any incident where the UAS will provide enhanced safety to the Community or responding members without compromising the Community's privacy rights and with the authorization of an Incident Commander, Watch Commander, or the UAS Commander Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 24 Capture and Storage of Data Policy Section 606.8 (UAS Obtained Data) states: •“Except for training and demonstration purposes, when the UAS is used to capture video or still images, the recordings shall be reviewed for evidentiary value. Any items of evidentiary value shall be downloaded and booked as evidence under the related case number. Audio and/or images captured by a UAS and booked as evidence shall be retained in accordance with the Department's Evidence Policy.” •“Department members shall not retain recordings of activities or information obtained during an on-duty UAS deployment.” Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 25 Transparency Policy Section 606.10 (Flight Logs and Information) states: •“Following the completion of any flight, UAS pilots will log the date, flight time, and locations of all UAS deployments. All UAS Flight logs shall, at a minimum, note: case number, incident type, purpose of flight, duration of flight, maximum altitude, and specify whether automated flight or manual flight.” Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 26 Accountability Policy Section 606.12 (Review of Recordings) states: •“The UAS Unit Commander or Sergeant may routinely inspect recordings, provided the inspections are reasonable, conducted in good faith, and not for the sole purpose of searching for violations of Department policy or law not related to a specific complaint or incident.” Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Item #15 Santa Ana Police Department February 3, 2026 Slide 27 Accountability Cont. Policy Section 606.4.1 (UAS Unit Commander): The UAS Commander will ensure that policies and procedures conform to current laws, regulations, and best practices and will have the following additional responsibilities: •Subsection (j) states: •Developing protocols to ensure that all data intended to be used as evidence are accessed, maintained, stored, and retrieved in a manner that ensures its integrity as evidence, including strict adherence to chain of custody requirements. Electronic trails, including encryption, authenticity certificates, and date and time stamping, shall be used as appropriate to preserve individual rights and to ensure the authenticity and maintenance of a secure evidentiary chain of custody. •Subsection (n) states: •Ensuring that established protocols are followed by monitoring and providing annual reports about the program to the Chief of Police.