I don’t get the privacy concern with police use of aerial drones (“Drones are a useful law enforcement tool in Maryland, with some parameters,” Nov. 19).
As I understand it, without a search warrant, anything a law enforcement officer can observe without trespassing is already fair game. So, all those rooftop surveillance exercises on “The Wire,” or in real life, would have been legal. Law enforcement with either eyeballs or the current stationary camera array or with the proposed unmanned drones all seem the equivalent. These three methods merely vary in cost, efficiency and, importantly, risk of injury or death to law enforcement officers.
What they have in common is that they involve the observance of activities that may be a crime, or that may constitute information important to investigating crime. Now, if a drone is peeking into windows, I’d welcome a privacy discussion but even what law enforcement can see through a window — if it indicates a crime in progress — should prompt action.
Tim Naughton, Baltimore
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