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I've thought about this with regard to the way law enforcement are able to speed in their vehicles to catch up to vehicles which are breaking speeding laws. It

I've thought about this with regard to the way law enforcement are able to speed in their vehicles to catch up to vehicles which are breaking speeding laws. It would seem that if speeding is dangerous for civilians it would also be dangerous for law enforcement. Perhaps law enforcement are able to take additional driving safety courses which enable them to have improved skill at higher speeds. If this is the case, civilians ought to also have the ability to take such courses to improve their skill as well. Instead, I see the limitations on speeding meant to bring down the total number of fast moving vehicles. And in the same way, the total number of drones flying over crowds will be reduced by the FAA's rules, even if law enforcement are still able to fly them over crowds.

Retric 12y ago
First off in many areas cops are limited the top seed allowed in a chase after all it’s hard to outrun a police radio. Second, a cop car / ambulance / fire truck with siren’s covered in flashing lights and with a siren blaring is far more conspicuous than a normal car which aids safety. Finally, top speeds are in part based around the lowest common denominator so a tired person with moderately reduced reflexes can still generally drive safely.
wongarsu 12y ago
But there's a problem with that analogy: law enforcement is allowed to speed in order to catch up with speeding vehicles only because that reduces the total amount of vehicles speeding (which both sounds contradictory and should be obvious). Flying a drone over a crowd of people does nothing to reduce the number of drones flying over crowds. A better analogy would be that law enforcement is allowed to speed in order to reach the scene of a crime faster. One could argue that having a drone hover over a potential crime scene has similar benefits. I'm not sure about the costs and benefits in this case, but it's certainly a possible argument.
- stevesearer 12y ago
  Sorry I wasn't trying to draw a perfect analogy, but rather think about the fact that there are things law enforcement are able to do because of special training which is unavailable to the general public. I imagine this would be extend to drone use for law enforcement - they will have certain exceptions to do things the general public cannot in special circumstances and will also likely have special training available to them which is also not available to the general public.

Retric 12y ago

First off in many areas cops are limited the top seed allowed in a chase after all it’s hard to outrun a police radio. Second, a cop car / ambulance / fire truck with siren’s covered in flashing lights and with a siren blaring is far more conspicuous than a normal car which aids safety. Finally, top speeds are in part based around the lowest common denominator so a tired person with moderately reduced reflexes can still generally drive safely.

wongarsu 12y ago

But there's a problem with that analogy: law enforcement is allowed to speed in order to catch up with speeding vehicles only because that reduces the total amount of vehicles speeding (which both sounds contradictory and should be obvious). Flying a drone over a crowd of people does nothing to reduce the number of drones flying over crowds. A better analogy would be that law enforcement is allowed to speed in order to reach the scene of a crime faster. One could argue that having a drone hover over a potential crime scene has similar benefits. I'm not sure about the costs and benefits in this case, but it's certainly a possible argument.

stevesearer 12y ago
Sorry I wasn't trying to draw a perfect analogy, but rather think about the fact that there are things law enforcement are able to do because of special training which is unavailable to the general public. I imagine this would be extend to drone use for law enforcement - they will have certain exceptions to do things the general public cannot in special circumstances and will also likely have special training available to them which is also not available to the general public.