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Date: April 30, 2024 Tue
Time: 12:05 am
Time: 12:05 am
Results for unmanned aerial system
1 results foundAuthor: Smith, Brian T. Title: Ethics on the Fly: Toward a Drone-Specific Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Summary: This thesis examines the issue of law enforcement's use of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) from an ethical perspective. It describes ethics as rules governing individual conduct that are functionally specific, relating to the role one plays in society. The role police play in U.S. communities and the ethical frameworks they use to guide their conduct have a great impact in defining the relationship between the people and their government in the American context, colored as it is by the social contract and the idea, enshrined in the Declaration of Independence, that the legitimacy of any government is derived from the consent of the governed.[1] Empowered to enforce the laws by which society has corporately agreed to be governed, police have a unique ethical relationship to the law. For an action to be ethical for police to take, it must first be legal. The law is a necessary deontological reference point for officers and agencies in defining right and wrong conduct. Unfortunately, in the current environment, legislation governing UAS use by police agencies is lacking. This circumstance creates a referential void for law enforcement executives seeking to put drone technology to use in service of the public. From a homeland security perspective, public safety stands to be greatly enhanced by the fielding of these versatile platforms. UAS will allow law enforcement agencies without manned aviation units to realize gains in situational awareness, crime scene investigation, accident investigation, search and rescue operations, warrant service, and tactical operations. At issue is how to put the technology to use in these legitimate public safety missions in a way that adequately addresses the privacy and other concerns that accompany any discussion about domestic drone use by government. It is imperative that these issues be considered if public support for law enforcement UAS deployment is to be secured.[2] Yet, at present, the discussion about the ethics of UAS employment for law enforcement purposes is nearly absent from the literature. This research seeks to help fill that void. The primary research question posed by this thesis is whether a prevailing ethical framework exists to govern the use of UAS for domestic law enforcement functions. This thesis concluded that no such consensus exists. Indeed, this research found no single set of ethical guidelines is available to which all American police agencies subscribe. Rather, state and local law enforcement in the United States is fragmented, which results in a lack of standardization regarding ethical norms. With over 18,000 law enforcement agencies nationwide,[3] law enforcement in the United States is far from a unitary project. Whether by accident or by design, this circumstance allows agencies to be responsive to local and regional concerns with regard to the ethics of policing. As a secondary research question, this thesis considers what ethical frameworks might be applied to this problem through an examination of the emerging literature. A hybrid research methodology using elements of the case study method, as well as a policy analysis section, are used in developing this thesis. Using the case study method, it examines evidence of ethical frameworks currently in use by domestic law enforcement agencies. The evidence considered is largely documentary and considered against the ethical standards society expects of law enforcement. Once described, a comparative policy analysis is performed to identify any overlapping areas of concern that appear to be held in common. This study identified seven common dimensions of ethical concern regarding UAS employment: Engagement Accountability Transparency Privacy Legality Use of Force Safety This thesis recommends that agencies currently using or preparing to use UAS for law enforcement missions address these dimensions in a drone-specific code of conduct, both to guide decision making for officers in the field and to inform the public regarding the uses and limitations of these increasingly capable public safety tools. Further, this thesis recommends the code of conduct be made available for public review and that it be considered a living document that is expected to change over time. Public opinion is not static; society's expectations are subject to refinement over time. It is in this light, possessing a capacity for change, that the code of conduct should be understood when considering drones and their place alongside other tools employed in law enforcement missions. Of the more than 18,000 law enforcement agencies in the United States,[4] only 20 agencies have a certificate of waiver authorization (COA) with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to operate drones.[5] Accordingly, very little experience exists from which to draw regarding what acceptable and unacceptable conduct looks like in law enforcement's use of drones. UAS use by police is just one facet of an ever-broadening debate in this country about the costs of security in the modern world. The debate about police use of drones is a debate about the future of policing. Law enforcement agencies are uniquely positioned at this moment to lead that conversation, demonstrating that drone technology can contribute to this nation's collective security in a way consistent with American principles and that maintains the consent of the governed. Details: Monterey, CA: Naval Postgraduate School, 2016. 79p. Source: Internet Resource: Thesis: Accessed March 28, 2018 at: https://www.hsdl.org/?abstract&did=792232 Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: https://www.hsdl.org/?abstract&did=792232 Shelf Number: 149603 Keywords: Code of ConductDronesHomeland SecurityLaw EnforcementPolice SurveillancePolice TechnologyUnmanned Aerial System |