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The Orange County Sheriff’s Department is looking to purchase drones from a company blacklisted by the federal government over concerns the drones can be used for spying by the Chinese government.
And they’re not the only law enforcement agency in the county using those drones.
A Voice of OC review found almost every police department in the county has at least one drone from Da Jiang Innovations, more commonly known as DJI, one of the global leaders in drone production.
Some local police officials say they don’t fly drones near sensitive areas and that they’re cost effective in helping search for missing people compared to helicopters.
Questions about DJI’s drones have been mounting for years, with the company currently blocked from receiving many US exports by the federal Department of Commerce and black listed by the Department of Defense as of 2022, which said the company was aiding the Chinese military.
“The Department of Defense (DOD) position is that systems produced by Da Jiang Innovations (DJI) pose potential threats to national security,” wrote Department of Defense officials in a separate memo in 2021. “Mitigating the threats posed by small (unmanned aircraft systems), including DJI systems, remains a priority across the Department.”
DJI has denied that any of its drones transmit data to the Chinese government, saying the latest efforts to ban their use in the United States are just an effort to suppress foreign investment and benefit domestic drone companies.
“The lawmakers driving this legislation continue to reference inaccurate and unsubstantiated allegations regarding DJI’s operations, and have amplified xenophobic narratives in a quest to support local drone manufacturers and eliminate market competition,” company representatives wrote in a blog post.
In an article published late May, the Associated Press reported that federal officials allegedly fear DJI is feeding critical infrastructure information to China’s government.
There’s currently a bill with bipartisan support in the US House of Representatives to outlaw the use of DJI drones nationwide, and they were already outlawed for use by government agencies in Florida last year.
Orange County Police Expand Drone Usage
Despite the mounting concerns, Orange County’s various police departments use DJI drones more than any other company.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Department, which serves as the police department for 13 of the county’s 34 cities and unincorporated areas, has the largest drone fleet, 87% of which are DJI drones.
The department used drones 145 times last year according to its annual disclosure report released last month, and has already spent nearly $137,000 acquiring DJI drones.
The department is also planning to purchase another $60,000 in drones over the next year from the company, but that might not move forward according to county Supervisor Doug Chaffee.
“It makes no sense to buy drones if you can’t use them,” Chaffee said when asked about the issue on Friday. “I will look into it more when it comes back to the board.”
“The Orange County Sheriff’s Department has not experienced any issues using our drones,” said Sheriff Spokesperson Sgt. Frank Gonzalez. “If at some point the state of California chooses to make any changes to the use of DJI drones, then the Orange County Sheriff’s Department will have no problem adhering to those changes.”
They aren’t alone.
A majority of police departments throughout Orange County – 18 out of 21 – use DJI drones, according to state-mandated military equipment disclosures.
Only the cities of Garden Grove, Brea and Placentia claimed to have no drones from DJI.
Altogether, the combined worth of police department drones throughout OC is at least $400,000, but it’s difficult to get a precise number because not all departments disclose what they spent on the drones or how much their annual maintenance costs are.
Despite their widespread use, most cities haven’t spent time talking about drone usage – except for Newport Beach, where city leaders discussed surveillance options last month and are developing a drone program with policies to address security and privacy concerns.
“We’ve worked up a drone policy that will be implemented once we have a drone program,” said Mayor Will O’Neill at the meeting, noting they would be implementing reviews to ensure data collected by drones or security cameras isn’t misused.
While the city currently owns a DJI drone, it’s rarely used according to city spokesman John Pope, and city staff plan to only purchase American-made drones going forward.
Departments Don’t Want to Give up Drones
Despite some of the national security concerns raised around DJI’s drones, local police departments say they’ve been nothing but a great success for them.
“I can’t think of a reason why we would get rid of them,” said Orange PD Lieutenant Phil McMullin.
He said the drones helped them find a missing woman who’d fallen in the hills near her own house, and that without the drone they may not have been able to track her down.
“I think without the drones we wouldn’t have been able to find her cause we can’t afford a helicopter,” McMullin said. “We plan on utilizing them for operations when needed.”
Jennifer Carey, spokesperson for the city of Huntington Beach, issued a statement on Thursday saying the department “places an emphasis on purchasing equipment best suited for the job,” and that DJI drones were a great help to the department.
“There are currently no restrictions at a state or federal level regarding the purchase of DJI products,” Carey said. “The HBPD will continue to monitor the situation and adjust purchasing processes if restrictions are put in place.”
Costa Mesa, Anaheim and Tustin offered similar statements, with Tustin Mayor Austin Lumbard noting that the drones are a great help, but would be shut down if they were outlawed.
“As of today we plan to continue our usage with sUAS technology,” Lumbard said in a statement. “The use of a drone system allows us to mitigate risks to our personnel, as well as getting real time information to officers to de-escalate and resolve high-risk situations.”
Voice of OC Fellow Gigi Gradillas contributed reporting to this story.
Noah Biesiada is a Voice of OC reporter and corps member with Report for America, a GroundTruth initiative. Contact him at nbiesiada@voiceofoc.org on Twitter @NBiesiada.
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