CENTRAL SPRINGS, Colo. (KOAA) — A Colorado Springs couple says a police drone followed them out of their neighborhood after a nearby disturbance, leading to a traffic stop — and prompting questions about how the Colorado Springs Police Department uses its drone program.
Jessica and Matt Jones say they were getting ready to leave for dinner on August 4 when they noticed a drone overhead. They say it followed them as they left their neighborhood.
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"It's very unsettling," Jessica Jones said.
The incident began when Colorado Springs police received a call about a disturbance near Hancock and Fillmore. Drone footage captured by CSPD shows the drone tracked a vehicle leaving the area.
A responding officer later pulled the Jones couple over at a nearby gas station.
"One male throwing stuff at three other females, and then we have a drone immediately overseen and then we see your car drive away. So that's the only reason we started following you because we weren't sure if you were involved or not," the officer said.
Jessica Jones said the experience was alarming.
"The whole thing was really intimidating and pretty scary," she said.
The couple said they had heard the argument next door and left to avoid the commotion. They say they noticed the drone tracking them as they drove away. In the drone video, the couple can be seen pointing and looking up at the drone overhead.
"We could see it following us and we stopped to talk to our neighbors on the way out, and they pointed it out too. They said, 'hey, I think that drone's following you.' We said, 'oh, that's weird'," Jessica Jones said.
Matt and Jessica Jones said they were frustrated that police followed them without first checking their address, license plates, or records. The original call about the disturbance was for their neighbors.
"They didn't check any records and we asked them why when he pulled us over and he said that they didn't have time to do that, but they did have time to follow us," Jessica Jones said.
The couple was not involved in the disturbance. They say they see drones in their neighborhood a couple of times a month.
"We don't know what they're being used for, what the crime is. It's just like kind of weird," Matt and Jessica Jones said.
CSPD officials shared that people can see the drone logs online to learn why a drone was dispatched. They also said it will only be sent out if there is a call.
CSPD Deputy Chief of Operations Support John Koch explained how the department decides when to deploy a drone instead of — or alongside — officers.
"In this instance, the drone was overhead much more quickly than the responding officers, was able to provide real-time information, and saw a vehicle leaving one of the addresses reported to the police department as maybe being involved in the disturbance," Koch said.
Koch said the decision to fly a drone is based on several factors.
"Is there a public safety threat? Is there a fire that could be spreading? Is there intelligence that could make the response safer for police officers or give information?" Koch said.
CSPD records show the department has used drones as first responders more than 7,000 times this year through July 26. 69% of drones as first responders arrived before officers on scene.
The drones have done good work for the department. The CSPD Facebook has many instances where the drones benefited officers. And Koch said he has also seen them help in fire related incidents as well.
"In instances that a drone responds, our drones are getting on scene faster than police officers and firefighters a huge percentage of time, and by doing that, the drones are able to identify people that are involved in calls for service if there are weapons," said Koch.
"We had an incident not too long ago where a fire was spreading and the drone was able to get overhead the fire and direct the fire department in with real-time video feeds, so the public safety implications of a drone as first responder or drone program are substantial and they're positive overwhelmingly for our community," Koch said.
Jessica and Matt say they agree that the drones are beneficial, but are wary following their unsettling situation. They say if the drone had followed the people involved in the disturbance, it could have been very beneficial.
“But that time was just used differently," Jessica said.
Since the incident, Matt and Jessica Jones say they have made it a goal to educate their neighbors about when to call 911 — and when other resources may be more appropriate. They made cards with valuable information about those other resources in Colorado Springs.
"After the encounter I think it just kind of like sparked a concern that maybe not every situation we need to be calling 911, right? We're gonna pass this around to our neighbors just to kind of like walk you through depending what the situation is to determine what the best resource or the call should be," Matt Jones said.
