From now on, instances in which Nashville police will be allowed to deploy drones as first responders will be much rarer.
That’s because council members voted Sept. 1 to grant final approval to an ordinance restricting when drones as first responder programs, unmanned aircraft systems and other related surveillance technology can be used.
The bill passed by a 27-3 vote, with no additional discussion or debate. Council members Jennifer Frensley Webb, Jeff Eslick and Tonya Hancock were opposed, and Joy Styles abstained.
Council members took up the bill in the first place following a Metro Nashville Police Department drones as first responders pilot program, which operated within a two-mile radius of the Madison police precinct for about two months
earlier this summer but launched without council approval. That drew scrutiny, both from council members and community advocates.
The program was possible due to an exception in city code that, despite requiring a public hearing and council approval to deploy surveillance tools in Nashville since 2017, had until now allowed for law enforcement use on a temporary basis during criminal investigations or while executing a lawfully-issued search warrant.
Now that exception’s been narrowed. Under the updated code, MNPD will still be able to deploy drones as first responders, but only during active shooter incidents, hostage situations or active searches for missing people. And those deployments are limited to periods up to 10 days, or as a result of a state of emergency declared by the mayor or during natural disasters.
The ordinance also bans the use of facial recognition technology and the use of autonomous drones operated by artificial intelligence.
While council members were mostly united in supporting the bill, the most high-profile opposition has come from Nashville's police chief, John Drake. Earlier in the bill's process toward approval, Drake sent a letter to council members expressing "serious concerns" about how it would affect MNPD, at least in the version of the bill as it was initially filed.
Austin Hornbostel is the Metro reporter for The Tennessean. Have a question about local government you want an answer to? Reach him with questions, tips and story ideas at ahornbostel@tennessean.com.
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This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: What's changing as Nashville Council votes to restrict police drone use
