COLORADO SPRINGS — The Colorado Springs Police Department is testing whether drones work in place of first responders. The pilot program is just getting started now and the chief explained to News 5 why his department is exploring this option.
Chief Adrian Vasquez is quick to say that drones like these will not replace officers, but as other departments nationwide use the technology, he wants to see how it could help his department better assess emergencies.
"Drones as a first responder are ... it's a program that, from a technology perspective, we're testing right now," the chief told News 5 in an exclusive interview.
Chief Vasquez says the department has been using drones for a few years to serve as a second set of eyes in scenarios where officers are also present.
"We use them all the time already for active calls, where maybe it's three in the morning, it's pitch dark and there's a suspect that ran into a field. Now we can fly that drone over and really find the suspect without putting an officer or canine in danger. That's how they're being used traditionally," he said.
But, he says, this pilot program will dispatch a drone to some 911 calls, providing an overhead view so the pilot can determine whether an officer should respond in person.
With its year-old model of graduating smaller classes of 32 cadets, on average, every 15 weeks, CSPD is expected to be at full authorized strength of 819 officers by November. But the chief says that number includes still untrained academy cadets, officers on leave for injury or military service and doesn't account for those they lose each month to retirement.
"That's one of the things I would really want the community to understand, is just because we do if we hit our 819 at the end of this year, that doesn't mean they're on the street answering calls for service," Vasquez said.
Las Vegas Police uses drones as first responders and shared its program details with CSPD. Chief Vasquez says a drone's pilot would determine from an overhead view that an officer is not needed at a scene. That assessment gives time back to the officer for proactive policing.
"Our officers out on the street right now don't have any time, as is the point across the nation, to really go and say, 'Okay, I know in my sector, this is a high crime area, and I'm going to take this free time that I have and go impact that high crime area,'" he said.
It is unclear what role drones will play in future emergencies in Southern Colorado, but the chief says, to implement the technology, he has to find the funding.
Right now, the department has one drone it is having respond to calls for service.
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