ACLU sounds alarm about letting drones monitor protesters
The American Civil Liberties Union on Tuesday accused Mayor Rahm Emanuel of being the heavy hand behind legislation that would allow police officers to use drones to monitor the growing number of protests on the streets of Chicago.
The groundbreaking bill would allow drones to be used to hover over crowds, for the purpose of taking still photos and making audio and video recordings of demonstrations. Even more troubling to the ACLU, the drones could be equipped with facial recognition technology.
The legislation has already cleared Illinois House and Senate committees and is poised for a final vote in both chambers.
The bills are sponsored by a pair of Chicago Democrats with close ties to the mayor: state Sen. Martin Sandoval and state Rep. John D’Amico, nephewof Ald. Marge Laurino ( 39th), the City Council’s president pro tem and one of Emanuel’s closest aldermanic allies.
“Given Chicago’s history of surveillance against protesters and social justice advocates— including by the notorious Red Squad — the Chicago police should not be able to use this new, powerful tool to monitor protesters near silently and from above,” Karen Sheley, director of the ACLU Police Practices Project, was quoted as saying in a news release.
“The legislation also ignores sweeping surveillance tools currently available to the police— including an integrated public camera system that covers much of the city.”
Sheley noted that the House and Senate versions of the controversial bill “effectively guts” legislation passed three years ago requiring a judicial warrant for the use of drones by police in Illinois.
Mayoral spokesperson Julienn Kaviar said the city met with the ACLU and “incorporated their input” to develop the proposed update to Illinois’ drone regulations.
The goal was “balancing privacy rights and ensuring the safety of those attending largescale events in Chicago— whether at the annual Lollapalooza music festival or an impromptu World Series celebration,” Kaviar said.
If the House and Senate approve the plan, law enforcement agencies would be required to report the date, time, location and authorized exception under the law in which the drone was used. The police department would also be required to delete any surveillance or other information gathered after 30 days, unless the information is relevant to a criminal matter.