Drones

BCSO Drone Unit (Drone Program)

The department established its Drone Unit in 2018. The department's Drone Unit is an ancillary duty team assignment with members from CIT and Investigations Division assisting with calls for service.

The department is committed to maintaining the highest protections of privacy and safety and follows all applicable local, state, and federal laws. The intent of the Drone Unit is to enhance BCSO's response to emergency calls for service, mitigate certain routine calls, provide situational awareness to supervisors, and assist in a variety of public safety initiatives. The Drone Unit can utilize an approved drone during an active response to an emergency or other call for police assistance. All BCSO Deputies involved in the Drone Unit are certified by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) as Remote Pilots with an official FAA License. 

BCSO's policy prohibits Remote Pilots from intentionally recording or transmitting images of any location where a person would have a reasonable expectation of privacy, such as inside private buildings, backyards, or other locations, except when authorized by consent, a lawful search warrant obtained by a magistrate, or in exigent circumstances during an emergency situation. All state and federal laws related to privacy are followed by the Aviation Unit. 

Chapter 423 Texas Government Code related to the Use of Unmanned Aircraft

Drone Unit Policy Statement: The Aviation Unit will respect the Constitutional privacy considerations of citizens, and the use of sUAS will be very limited in scope and only used as authorized by the outline described in this General Order. The sUAS program at the Burleson County Sheriff's Office may be utilized for event management to broaden awareness of conditions on the ground to safeguard public safety. In addition, the unit may be utilized in a reactive policing manner to incidents. The random use of departmental unmanned aircraft systems in residential areas, solely for the purpose of gathering evidence related to criminal wrongdoing or for any other unauthorized purpose, is prohibited. 

Authorized uses of the BCSO Drone Unit:

Barricaded Suspect/Hostage Situation
Active Felony Call in Progress
Serious Bodily Injury or Fatality Crash Scene (for mapping)
Felony Warrant Service
Special Event Management 
Missing Child or Person Cases
Rescue Operations
Storm Damage Assessments
Active Fire Scenes and Damage Assessments
Hazardous Materials Incidents
S.W.A.T. High Risk Operations
Brand Management (Collecting generic city images)