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Bye Bye License

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R.Perry

R.Perry

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Fairly new 107 operator liked watching fires, was warned once not to fly in the area, second time Sheriff took the drone, and the FAA was call and took his license.

I'll try to get the full details on this, it is second hand from a very reliable source.

This type of thing could be the beginning of local law enforcement working with the FAA to put a stop to some of the dumb things some people do.
 
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Maybe, maybe not. Conditions matter immensely. In the U.S. the operator would have to be interfering with the duties of law enforcement and safety personnel. Our Supreme Court ruled some years ago that public agency personnel are not protected from being filmed or recorded when conducting official duties. So if stand off distance was safe, no aerial ambulance involved, and no TFR issued he would likely be completely legal.
 
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PatR said:
Maybe, maybe not. Conditions matter immensely. In the U.S. the operator would have to be interfering with the duties of law enforcement and safety personnel. Our Supreme Court ruled some years ago that public agency personnel are not protected from being filmed or recorded when conducting official duties. So if stand off distance was safe, no aerial ambulance involved, and no TFR issued he would likely be completely legal.
Click to expand...
"interfering with the duties of law enforcement and safety personnel. " is an extremely subjective argument. It all depends on the circumstances. I agree that some police can be overzealous but the devil is in the details.
 
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Indeed. It often comes down to a judge giving more weight to the guys with the badges and guns. Lacking real accurate, visually depicted, and easily understandable telemetry an operator will be in for a losing battle.
 
AH-1G said:
So, he said he wasn't taking pictures or video of the crime scene? But we know now he was.
So why was he flying around the accident scene?? Just to make noise? What a looser!
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The pictures were on his ipad. He didn't have a card in the drone.

Why is he a "looser" for flying a drone around the scene while news helicopters and airplanes do likewise at similar accident or crime scenes?
 
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Ahhhh....I would think people feel that way because he as a drone pilot, was in violation of flying over an emergency scene.... Even if it is a grey area, why push it?? It's going to cost the good pilots in the long run
You may disagree but when you are taking photos of a scene with a drone and either sharing them or are in possession of them, you are interfering with an investigation. No need to have another factor to deal with on a scene, that you may need to shield the scene from.
Most news birds have a professional standard where they will not distribute videos or photos that are graphic or would jeopardize an investigation.
Also, if a drone is over the scene and a medical chopper needs to land, they will more then likely clear the area if the drone is reported. All in all, not a good idea
 
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aerialimagery said:
The pictures were on his ipad. He didn't have a card in the drone.

Why is he a "looser" for flying a drone around the scene while news helicopters and airplanes do likewise at similar accident or crime scenes?
Click to expand...
News helicopters and airplanes fly below 400 feet at these scenes? Never seen that...
 
401 Feet said:
Ahhhh....I would think people feel that way because he as a drone pilot, was in violation of flying over an emergency scene.... Even if it is a grey area, why push it?? It's going to cost the good pilots in the long run
You may disagree but when you are taking photos of a scene with a drone and either sharing them or are in possession of them, you are interfering with an investigation. No need to have another factor to deal with on a scene, that you may need to shield the scene from.
Most news birds have a professional standard where they will not distribute videos or photos that are graphic or would jeopardize an investigation.
Also, if a drone is over the scene and a medical chopper needs to land, they will more then likely clear the area if the drone is reported. All in all, not a good idea
Click to expand...

What if a drone arrives on the scene BEFORE the responders arrive and leaves before they arrive? Does the drone operator have a right to gather this information?

I'm not "pushing" anything. I just don't want to see someone muscled unfairly by the police. I legally flew my drone around a plant taking some photos on speculation, and the plant security man tracked me down and asked what I was doing. I explained and he seemed ok with me and my explanation (I had been doing work for a customer across the street as well), but then heard from a deputy who the security man contacted who told me I had to agree to delete those images or I could be in jeopardy of having my drone seized. I don't see what right he had to threaten me or what interest he has in my images, especially since it would be very easy to rent a Cessna and circle the plant at 500' and get much better images with my DSLR.
 
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One unpleasant experience with one dumb cop (did u file a complaint?) hardly justifies casting aspersions on all law enforcement, and like I said earlier, we don't have all the facts. If the DA agrees this dude was interfering with police, then he'll get his day in court. Taking the story aside, do you think it's a good idea to fly a drone over emergency responders working a scene?

As a retired cop I assure you the last thing I need is a drone buzzing over my head and distracting me. Every state has a statute prohibiting the obstruction of government operations, or words to that effect, and I would have had no problem citing anyone harassing me with his toy, after giving him one warning.
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It is a mickey mouse violation, I'd write him a ticket and send him packing; takes too long to book someone.
 
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