We urge the Syracuse Common Council to reject the current proposal for a Drone First Responder program. We do this in light of concerns regarding personal privacy and data security as well as community trust. By allowing the use of these “first responders”  for 911 response of any level of priority, it opens up the possibility that 911 could function as a pretext for surveillance in otherwise prohibited circumstances.  A drone program without strict guidelines on appropriate use, exists in opposition to consistent recommendations by civil rights advocates across the United States, including the ACLU and the original recommendations of Syracuse’s own Surveillance Technology Working Group.

This is an expansion of SPD's relationship with the same company that opened up Syracuse drivers' information from the ALPR database to police departments across the country and more disturbingly, to ICE. This exposure resulted in 4.4 million searches of Syracuse data sing June of 2024. 2,000 of those searches were labeled as immigration related. Earlier this year, members of Congress opened a formal investigation into Flock cameras for their “role in enabling invasive surveillance practices, that threaten the safety and civil liberties of women, immigrants and other vulnerable Americans”.  And It has been reported that the company was considering purchasing stolen data from large scale hacks and incorporating it into their developing projects. These are not the hands we want our sensitive information in. 

To approve this program right now would require turning a blind eye to the current political climate. In this environment where entire communities harbor deep fears and anxieties rooted in threats from powers meant to protect them, expanding that power is a blatant disregard for the welfare and feelings of the people  that the Common Council is meant to represent. Please deny this proposal.