Drones To Revolutionize 911 Response Times In Everett

The announcement was made on Monday. It's official, drones are now entering the police force in Everett, WA. Specifically, they are going to be used for early response to 911 calls. Don't get me wrong, the Everett police force has drones now. They have them in the trunks of their cars, but it takes time to get the drone out of the car, get it up in the air, and get it headed in the direction it's supposed to go. This new drone system gives them the ability of rapid deployment. 

According to mynorthwest.com,
‘The Everett Police Department is launching a two-year drone pilot program in partnership with Flock Safety to help address staffing shortages.
Beginning in June, two drones—one assigned to north Everett and one to the south—will respond to 911 calls and provide officers with real-time video before they arrive on scene, according to the Everett Herald.‘ 

Currently in Everett, police response times are approximately 4 minutes. They claim that the use of drones would get the response time down to 90 seconds. Now keep in mind that the drones won't actually replace officers. Officers will still be required to deal with the public, but the thought is that the drones would provide responding officers with more immediate information before they arrive on the scene. 

The company providing the drones is called Flock Safety. This is a company that's known mostly for automated drone surveillance systems. 

Like every other city in Washington state, budgets are tight, and the Everett Police Department is experiencing that tightening of budgets as well. Their hope is that the use of drones will be a “force multiplier” when dealing with 911 calls. 

As far as saving money goes, the first drone comes at no cost. The second drone comes with a discount and after two years if they decide to continue with the program drones will cost Up to $300,000 each per year depending on options and service plans. 

So, the drones aren't equipped with microphones or speakers, but obviously they do have cameras and my question is, does the footage that a drone captures have the potential to be used as evidence in a trial? 

I'm just asking, let's get a little clarity.
Everett police launch drone program
Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) | Everett, WA - Official Website
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VIDEO: Everett approves 911 drone program | Watch
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