Howard County Police Department Expands Drone Program to Enhance Public Safety Response
The Howard County Police Department (HCPD) is enhancing its public safety services by expanding its drone program to include 'Drone as First Responder' (DFR) units. This initiative will deploy seven pre-positioned drones from rooftop docks, enabling them to reach calls-for-service within minutes or even seconds by bypassing traffic and physical barriers. These drones will stream live video to the HCPD’s Real Time Information Center, providing responding officers with crucial aerial information to assess hazards, locate suspects, and track missing individuals. The DFR program, like the HCPD's existing drone operations launched in early 2020, will not be used for public patrolling, facial identification, or sound recording. In addition to the DFR program, the HCPD will implement other technological advancements through an agreement with Axon, including tools for immediate translation, efficient report writing, enhanced digital evidence collection, and improved handling of non-emergency public calls, thereby ...