More Drones To Fly In Concord Skies, With A Price

CONCORD, CA — The Concord Police Department wants to spend more than half a million dollars for two new, fully automated drones and additional body cameras, an ask on today's Nov. 4 city council agenda.

The department has used drones since 2021.

Now, police are planning to spend $531,496 to add new drones and 10 more body cameras to the department's collection of surveillance tools.

The department plans to buy two Skydio X10 drones, three docking stations, and hardware, installation, and 31 months of software and maintenance services.

Police already have two Skydio X10 drones that are launched manually and require ongoing oversight to operate.

Lt. Joshua Gilfry said in a report that the department wants to transition to a "drone as a first responder" program.

This means the devices can be dispatched from a docking station when a 911 call comes in. Cameras stream video of whatever they find an incident and can track people before police or firefighters arrive — or instead of them.

Their features include thermal imaging, 360-degree views, and detailed images. They can also deliver objects like defibrillators or Narcan, according to the manufacturer, Skydio. The cost is $505,847, including a 15 percent contingency for possible additional project needs.

Police are also spending $25,649 for 10 body cameras to augment the current number.
The money will come from earmarked budgets, according to the report. But Concord police need council permission to buy both items from a single source.

The vendor is Axon Enterprise Inc., which was, until 2017, called TASER International, known for its line of electroshock weapons. Axon still sells Tasers, but drones and body cameras occupy a growing portion of their sales.

Since 2021, Concord police have made 864 drone flights, according to the report.
The deployments get logged and recorded, available on a website. There are policies for handling the data and images captured by the drones.

Concord police used a drone during reports of a fight at a 7-11, a man armed with an AK-47 in a canal, indecent exposure, spray-painting, as well as overhead surveillance during the pursuit of people or vehicles.

The Concord City Council meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. More info: https://stream2.ci.concord.ca....