$20,000 drone Republic PD’s latest tool in serving the public

The Republic Police Department has a new high-tech tool to help them serve the public. The department recently acquired a Skydio X10 drone, which its operator, Cpl. Gary Dove, said possesses many features that make it a useful device in various situations.
“We can use it for enforcing the law, but we can also use it for just general public service,” he said. “One of those things we are going to use it for is motor vehicle accidents, we can get a 360-degree view of the accident; we can (also) use it for apprehension of subjects that have fled or are hiding.”
Drone can look over a crime scene before officers arrive
Dove said the drone can be used to scout out an area where a crime is occurring before officers arrive, providing them with valuable intelligence that can help them apprehend suspects.
We can … fly it into an area where we know we’re getting calls for, say car break-ins and everything like that. I can get that drone in there before the (patrol) cars get there, and (the perpetrators) aren’t looking for the drone; they’re looking for, for patrol cars or people out. But I can basically give information to officers before they actually get into the neighborhood.”

A valuable tool in helping locate missing people
The drone can also help officers come to the aid of someone who might be in distress, Dove said.
“(Let’s) say (at) our fireworks show or Pumpkin Daze or something like that, a child ends up missing, and I put this up … (and) see the child,” he said. “(I) have to tap on (a control), and (the drone) will follow that particular child through the crowd. And then, if they get into a car, it’ll automatically shift to that car, and it will follow the car.”
Dove recalled an incident that happened before the Republic PD acquired the drone, during which time they had to locate a person with Alzheimer’s who’d gone missing.
“It turned out (tragically),” he said, but we could have certainly used something like this, because we had a long stretch of area to look through, and it involved jumping over barbed-wire fences and things like … climbing brush. (That) could have been eliminated … with something like this.”

Drone can be used for other purposes
The drone can also be used to help other departments. Dove said he used it recently to help the Republic Fire Department when they were putting out a fire at Paul Jones Excavating.
“I was able to find a very hot spot In the roof of that metal building,” he said, “and once I showed it to the Battalion Chief, they rolled the hoses back out and went back out there and put it out. That prevented them from having to make a second trip out there later.”

Dove chose to operate drone due to aviation background
Dove is currently the only Republic Police officer authorized to operate the drone. He said he wanted to pilot it because of his earlier training.
“I have an aviation background,” he said. “I’ve been studying aviation since I was 21 years old, so I took the initiative. This is something that fits my skill set. And I had a passion for it; I long felt like we needed some kind of eye in the sky.”

Drone only to be used “when it’s appropriate”
Some of the drone’s technical capabilities, Dove said, include its thermal camera, an ability to read a license plate from 800 feet away, a camera that can allow its operator to see a building from up to 14 miles away and other features. He said that he understands that some people might be concerned as to how the drone is used, however, he stressed that the drone will only be used for its intended purpose; to serve the public.
“I want the public to know that we’ll use (the drone) when it’s appropriate,” he said, “and when it’s not appropriate … (it) remains in (its) case.”
Dove also said that while $20,000 may seem like a lot of money to spend on a drone, it is a good investment in public safety.
“I don’t know a single parent that wouldn’t … be glad the city spent $20,000 to find their kid, if that child was missing,” he said.