How Companies Tried to Use the Pandemic to Get Law Enforcement to Use More Drones

In April, as COVID-19 cases exploded across the U.S. and local officials scrambled for solutions, a police department in Connecticut tried a new way to monitor the spread of the virus. One morning, as masked shoppers lined up 6 feet apart outside Trader Joe's in Westport, the police department flew a drone overhead to observe their social distancing and detect potential coronavirus symptoms, such as high temperature and increased heart rate. According to internal emails, the captain flying the mission wanted to "take advantage" of the store's line. But the store had no heads-up about the flight, and neither did the customers on their grocery runs, even though the drone technology managed to track figures both inside and outside. The drone program was unveiled a week later when the department announced its "Flatten the Curve Pilot Program" in collaboration with the Canadian drone company Draganfly, which was due to last through the summer. But less than 48 hours later after the program's public unveiling, the police department was forced to dump it amid intense backlash from Westport residents.