Dear Los Angeles Police Commission:

I'm writing to urge you to vote "no" on the LAPD's proposal to use drones.

Angelenos have shown strong and repeated opposition to the use of drones by law enforcement: On Thurs., Sept. 28, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Civilian Oversight Commission passed a motion to permanently ground the use of its drone. LAPD's four community feedback meetings on the current drone proposal were met with an overwhelmingly negative response.

The use of drones by the LAPD would signify a major escalation of the militarization of local law enforcement — normalizing the continued violations of human rights within our communities.

As a police commission appointed by the mayor, you are tasked with representing the community's voice. In that regard, the community is united: #NoDronesLA. Please vote NO on this proposal.

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    Tell the Los Angeles Police Commission: #NoDronesLA

    The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) wants to add a drone to its already militarized police arsenal.1

    Right now the Los Angeles Police Commission is considering a proposal that would allow the LAPD to operate a drone as part of a one-year pilot program. Despite a lack of public support, the police commission plans to vote on this proposal next week.

    The LAPD is promising to use its drone only in extreme circumstances, like a bomb threat or a hostage crisis. But the LAPD has made similar promises in the past to justify moves toward military-style policing.

    And despite those assurances, Los Angeles was the first city to create a SWAT team,2 which later became a destructive tool against communities of color.

    Drones are fast becoming a surveillance tool for law enforcement, with over 200 police and sheriffs’ departments now owning and operating them.3 Drones can be equipped with live-video streaming, infrared cameras, tasers and even cellphone interceptors. In North Dakota, police are even allowed to weaponize their drones.

    Despite emphatic public opposition,4 the police commission in Los Angeles seems ready to approve this pilot program. Help us tell the LAPD: #NoDronesLA.

    Take action by Oct. 16: Urge the L.A. Police Commission to vote against this dangerous proposal. 

    1. “Should the LAPD Use Drones? Here’s What’s Behind the Heated Debate,” Los Angeles Times, Aug. 8, 2017: http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-lapd-drones-20170808-story.html

    2. “The Militarization of Police Started in Los Angeles,” L.A. Weekly, Aug. 15, 2014: http://www.laweekly.com/news/the-militarization-of-police-started-in-los-angeles-5010287

    3. “Drones at Home,” Center for the Study of Drones, Bard College, April 2017: http://dronecenter.bard.edu/files/2017/04/CSD-Public-Safety-Drones-Web.pdf

    4. “Should the LAPD Test Drones? Police Get an Earful from the Public,” Los Angeles Times, Aug. 8, 2017: http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-lapd-drones-feedback-20170823-story.html