An article on the CBC caught our eye. The Hamilton Police Services has spent $30,000 to purchase drones for use. According to the report the drones have been used for simple search and rescue missions, as well as for use to monitor university parties, and protests against Justin Trudeau. This is such a wide range to use this tool we pondered what was the criteria for it being implemented? More importantly, what happens to the footage recorded? What might come of future decisions to implement facial recognition technology in these drones? All reasonable and justifiable questions to be asked.
Yet we took it a step further in our discussion. Exactly where is the oversight for our police services? They are meant to serve and protect us the citizens of the 905 and Ontario. Yet when scrutiny and oversight is wanted to be introduced, especially in the use of drones by our law enforcement departments, often cries of anti police sentiment are thrown against the ones asking the questions. Right wing politicians who often are the first to decry over spending and mismanagement of public funds, often go silent when police departments consistently get higher and higher budget approvals with little to know pushback. When did we let hero worship run amok, that often our elected officials are unable to hold police departments to account to justify their spending?
Roland and Joel look at what something like a police department owning a drone might mean for our Charter rights and where oversight and accountability might need to be brought into ensure abuse and mismanagement doesn’t come into play.
https://www.cbc.ca/newsinteractives/features/police-drones
It takes money and time to this podcast. We love doing what we do, but please consider supporting us if you can so we can keep improving, and keep paying the bills.
You can become a monthly or yearly patron on our website at 905er.ca. We didn’t like sharing your generosity with that other ‘patron’ website, so we created our own patron system. Become a patron, get member benefits and our eternal gratitude, and know that you’re not mainly funding some crummy web company in the US. Win win!
Or, why not buy us a coffee?
Nicholas Paul: sound editing.
The Quadrafonics: fantastic opening and closing tunes!