New York City deploys drones to monitor Labor Day parties amid increased surveillance

New York City is facing backlash for its decision to use drones to monitor backyard Labor Day parties this weekend.

Assistant NYPD Commissioner Kaz Daughtry announced Thursday the drones will be deployed in response to complaints from neighbors. If a resident reports that their neighbor's party is too loud, for example, the NYPD will send a drone to survey the party from overhead instead of sending officers in person.

“If a caller states there’s a large crowd, a large party in a backyard, we’re going to be utilizing our assets to go up and go check on the party,” said Daughtry, according to the Associated Press.

Public outcry forced New York City Mayor Eric Adams — who has previously praised drones for their “endless” potential — to address the issue, telling reporters Friday that no one will be “monitored.”

“We have to push back on the sci-fi aspects of drones — nobody’s going to be monitored,” Adams said at a press conference. 

“So what we’re doing over this weekend, there are a number of calls of loud music, disruptive behavior,” the mayor added. “Instead of the police having to respond and look at those, they’re going to utilize drones from a safe distance up, not down flying in someone’s backyard to see what they have on a grill.”

The announcement comes as Adams continues to develop a high-tech surveillance infrastructure around the city, including AI-powered law enforcement dogs to police the streets. An autonomous robot has also been purchased to patrol Times Square. During a visit from Israel’s president last month, Adams boasted that 60,000 surveillance cameras around the city are used to “track suspects.” Police officers who are unsuccessful at flagging cars down are equipped with tracking devices they can shoot at the vehicles to avoid car chases.

But drones appear to be the preferred surveillance tool for governments. During the COVID-19  pandemic, US cities like Chula Vista, California and Elizabeth, New Jersey used drones to enforce lockdowns and physical distancing restrictions. Countries around the world, including China, Israel, France, Italy, and Spain, did the same.

Last year Dallas became Texas’ first municipality to implement a drone program. The city can deploy the unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) from any of six locations for a variety of purposes such as construction inspection, emergency management, crowd control and law enforcement.