Lower Merion police request funds for a ‘first responder’ drone as anxieties about surveillance spike nationwide
The township's police department asked for $375,000 over five years to fund a drone that could be automatically dispatched to the scene of 911 calls.
Lower Merion’s police department has requested funds for a program that would automatically dispatch a drone to the scene of certain 911 calls.
Andy Block, Lower Merion’s police superintendent, pitched commissioners on Axon’s Drone as First Responder program during a Wednesday budget workshop, describing the technology as a “force multiplier” for the police department that could provide officers with information before they arrive at a crime scene. The department requested $375,000 for a five-year investment in one drone.
The proposal was met with skepticism from commissioners, many of whom expressed hesitancy about approving funding for the program without strict policies on the books, warning of “mission creep” and privacy violations as anxiety about surveillance technology balloons nationwide.
What is the Drone as First Responder program?
Under the program, a drone would be stationed at a dock in Lower Merion and would be automatically launched when 911 dispatchers receive reports of certain incidents, which are classified by codes. Specific codes would release the drone to the site of an incident, a process that would typically happen within 30 seconds of the call coming in, Block said. Once the drone launches, one remote operator, a police officer, would watch the live video feed and evaluate if and where resources should be sent.
The automated drones differ from Lower Merion’s five existing drones, which require manual setup and launch by an officer once a dispatch is ordered, adding minutes of lag time, Block told commissioners at the budget workshop.
First responder drones could help officials get ahead on burglaries, missing persons incidents, fires, and area searches, and could evaluate if police are needed at a scene without taking the time and resources to dispatch officers to every call, the police superintendent said.
Axon, the drone manufacturer, currently provides Lower Merion’s records management system, body cameras, tasers, and in-car cameras. The township moved over to Axon’s systems in January 2025.
Block described recent incidences where first responder drones could have helped police officers respond more quickly and effectively, including a 2024 Meredith Road home invasion and a recent road rage incident on the Blue Route, which led to a suspect chase in Lower Merion.
He touted the versatility of the drones, floating their potential use for other purposes, including traffic and code enforcement. The Montgomery County District Attorney’s office confirmed that Lower Merion is legally allowed to use drones for traffic enforcement.
Bensalem launched a “drone as first responder” program earlier this year, which Block described as a model for Lower Merion, calling Bensalem’s program “very impressive.”
Concerns over privacy
The Drone as First Responder program was pioneered by the Chula Vista, Calif., police department, which in 2018 became the first municipal police department in the country to deploy the technology. Between 2018 and 2024, the department’s first responder drones made more than 20,000 flights.
Since then, the technology has grown in popularity among police departments across the country, with municipalities from Washington to Kentucky signing on. A police department in Missouri said its Drone as First Responder program helped with 12 felony arrests in two months this summer.
Police in Chula Vista have said the technology improved their response times and helped officers deescalate dangerous situations. Yet an investigation by WIRED found that the drones surveilled poorer residents far more frequently than wealthier residents, and were often dispatched for minor issues like vandalism and loud music, in addition to more serious incidents. All the while, residents who regularly encountered the drones reported “feeling constantly watched.” The Chula Vista Police Department has said its drones do not conduct random surveillance or search for suspicious activity.
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Lower Merion commissioners on Wednesday shared apprehension about the implications for residents’ privacy should automated drones begin traversing the township’s airspace.
No official vote on the funding was taken at the budget workshop. Commissioners said they would need to see clearer policy guidelines before moving the drone into the budget.
“Surveillance and privacy is a really big issue right now,” commissioner Maggie Harper Epstein said, adding that the program “would be a tough thing to communicate to the residents of the township.”
Todd Sinai, the board’s president, warned that “there is a difference” between a police officer piloting a drone toward the site of a potential crime and a drone launching automatically “because someone just called something in, and it flies over the township to get to the site, recording along the way.”
Many criticized the request to approve funding before putting policy guidelines on the books.
“Until we see what that policy is, I would be very uncomfortable giving support to this,” commissioner Daniel Bernheim said.
Block clarified that Lower Merion already has a drone policy in place but would need to update its code to specifically include the automated drones.
A ‘no-brainer’ for law enforcement
Not everyone shared concerns.
Commissioner Charles Gregory called the drone program a “no-brainer” and said that the minutes saved with the automated devices could be the difference between life and death in extreme situations.
Commissioner Louis Rossman said the program “is a great idea” and “just seems like the future.”
Rossman referenced a series of residential burglaries in the township, saying the drone program may have been able to assist with apprehending offenders who have “eluded” law enforcement.
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