Observational analysis demonstrates rapid arrival and call clearance by drone first responders in a municipal police department, suggesting transformative potential for aerial law enforcement.
Police agencies are increasingly incorporating drones into their policing operations. Very recently, some police agencies have begun to use drones as a form of first responder: deploying drones to calls for police service on first instance and without specific solicitation from ground-level units. Drawing upon data from a mid-size, municipal police agency in California, I provide a snapshot of how a drone as first responder (DFR) program operates in contemporary policing. My analyses reveal that DFR units are quick to arrive at calls for service: frequently arriving before any ground-level units and sometimes even clearing calls without the need for any attendance by ground-level units. My analyses also reveal that the types of calls for service that DFR units attend are diverse and include an array of call-types, with many such calls involving reports, offenses, and arrests. I discuss my findings regarding this emerging form of technology with respect to policing research and practice. I also make a call for future research in this domain.
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Rylan Simpson (2026) studied this question.
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