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City Council Regular Meeting Minutes January 28, 2025 Page 4 1.1 Public Comment Opportunity: The law enforcement agency must provide an 2 opportunity for public comment before purchasing or using a UAV. Comments must 3 be accepted electronically and by mail. On December 23, 2024, a News Flash was 4 sent announcing the exploration of the Drone Program, along with placement on the 5 City of St. Anthony Village website. As of today, 5 comments were received via 6 electronic communications. The 5 responses included: Supportive, wondering who 7 will pay for drone; Very supportive; Totally in favor; Great idea; and Questions about 8 how drone will be deployed and findings from other drone programs. 2.9 Governing Body Meeting: The governing body with jurisdiction over the budget of 10 the local law enforcement agency must allow public comment at a regularly 11 scheduled meeting. Also included in the December 23, 2024 announcement was the 12 notice of the opportunity for public comment during the January 28, 2025 City 13 Council meeting. 14 15 Police Chief Spiess stated the purpose of the Drone Program is to serve the mission of the St. 16 Anthony Police Department: To improve the overall quality of life by preserving the peace and 17 safety of the community. There is currently widespread use of drones in Minnesota law 18 enforcement. As of June 2024, 99 Minnesota law enforcement agencies use drones, and all 19 neighboring police departments to St. Anthony have an active drone program. Drones have 20 widespread use in the location of missing and vulnerable persons, improving security for large- 21 scale public events, and to enhance safety for police officers and the community. 22 23 Currently St Anthony Police Department has had to rely on outside agencies to assist when the 24 use of a drone is needed. Response is limited to the availability of others. Recently, the use of 25 drones could have been used to assist in locating a missing and vulnerable person, in determining 26 the correct response of officers dispatched to the report of juveniles with firearms, and in 27 locating a burglary suspect inside of a home. 28 29 There is some concern that the use of drones could impede the privacy afforded to members of 30 our community. Minnesota State Statute 626-19 articulates when and where a drone can be used 31 without the use of a search warrant. These include: 32 Emergency situation that involves risk of death or bodily harm to a person. 33 Public event with heightened safety concerns. 34 Counter risk of terrorist attack. 35 Prevent loss of life and property in disaster situations. 36 Conduct threat assessment in anticipation of a special event. 37 Collect information from public areas if there is reasonable suspicion of criminal activity. 38 Crash reconstruction of serious collision. 39 Over public area for officer training or public relations purposes. 40 41 Per MN State Statute 626-19(12) all UAV deployments without a search warrant must be 42 reported to the Commissioner of Public Safety, which is then disseminated to the public. 43 44 The Drone Program represents a significant step forward in enhancing the capabilities of the St. 45 Anthony Police Department. By adhering to statutory requirements and fostering community 46 engagement, we aim to implement this program responsibly and effectively. 8