Valdosta, GA Police Officer Arrested For UAV Photography | Aero-News Network
Aero-News Network
RSS icon RSS feed
podcast icon MP3 podcast
Subscribe Aero-News e-mail Newsletter Subscribe

Airborne Unlimited -- Most Recent Daily Episodes

Episode Date

Airborne-Monday

Airborne-Tuesday

Airborne-Wednesday Airborne-Thursday

Airborne-Friday

Airborne On YouTube

Airborne-Unlimited-12.02.24

Airborne-NextGen-12.03.24

Airborne-Unlimited-12.04.24

Airborne Flt Training-12.05.24

Airborne-Unlimited-12.06.24

Fri, Sep 18, 2015

Valdosta, GA Police Officer Arrested For UAV Photography

Was Off-Duty At The Time He Allegedly Took Photos Of People In His Neighborhood

On September 10, 2015, Lanier County (GA) Sheriff's Deputies arrested a Valdosta, GA Police officer, charging him with one count of violation of Georgia Code 16-11-62: Eavesdropping, Surveillance, or Intercepting Communication (which invades the privacy of another).

Arrested was Howard Kirkland, age 53 of Ard Road, Ray City , Lanier County, Georgia. Television station WCTV reports that he is a nine-year veteran of the Valdosta Police Department.

According to a Lanier County Sheriff's office news release, the case is currently under continued investigation and involves the arrested person allegedly utilizing a remote controlled aircraft equipped with a camera to observe other people in the neighborhood without their consent and in a private place out of public view.

Complaints were initially filed by several members of the community in late June and additional complaints were received in July. In the late June complaint a Sheriff's Deputy made contact with the suspect in the case and attempted to encourage him not to operate the "drone" aircraft above the homes of the complainants to hopefully prevent any escalation in the matter.

Additional complaints were received and the investigation into the matter continued. After consultation with the District Attorney's office and other affected agencies a determination to file formal charges was reached last week.

"The use of "drone" or unmanned surveillance aircraft in and around residential areas is something that needs to be approached very carefully by persons who buy and use such devices," said Sheriff Charles N. "Nick" Norton. "I think we will see additional legislation concerning these devices and their potential for abuse addressed soon by law makers and possibly see a more rigid set of guidelines concerning their use in and around populated areas. Again this is an issue where breaking technology provides use with a highly capable tool that can be used for both legal or illegal purposes and operators have to always err on the side of caution, especially after having been repeatedly warned concerning the matter.

"As far as this particular case goes, the investigation is ongoing and we appreciate the assistance and cooperation of Chief Childress and the Valdosta Police Department and other agencies involved. This is the LAST thing we wanted to be confronted with as far as "types" of cases go, but we have a responsibility to address the complaints of our citizens and to determine if probable cause exists to make and arrest. After that, it will be up to the court system to decide guilt or innocence based on the information we provide and that is provided by the accused.

"What I really do appreciate is that the victims in this case attempted to address the situation themselves but contacted the Sheriff's Office when that failed rather than taking more drastic action."

(Image provided by the Lanier County Sheriff's Office)

FMI: www.laniercountysheriff.com

Advertisement

More News

NTSB Final Report: Michael G Darby DARD 1

After Landing He Realized He Had Misidentified The Runway And Landed In Softer Snow Analysis: The pilot reported that during approach to the snow-covered runway in flat light condi>[...]

ANN's Daily Aero-Term (12.04.24): Arresting System

Arresting System A safety device consisting of two major components, namely, engaging or catching devices and energy absorption devices for the purpose of arresting both tailhook a>[...]

Aero-News: Quote of the Day (12.04.24)

“We learned a great deal in the process, such as greater coding skills, soldering techniques, and video editing skills...” Source: Cuyahoga County Team Captain John Ana>[...]

Airborne Affordable Flyers 11.26.24: BushCat's Back!, LODA Update, DRL Miami

Also: Van Celebrates 85th, Trio Pro Pilot Autopilot, Joby on MSFS24, Sonex Transition The BushCat was manufactured in South Africa by SkyReach beginning in 2014, selling its first >[...]

Airborne 12.02.24: Electra FG EIS, Prez Osprey Problems, Starship Wants 25

Also: EAA Ray Foundation, MagniX Records, Ruko U11MINI Drone, RCAF PC-21s Elektra Solar recently put the first aircraft from its Elektra Trainer Fixed-Gear (FG) family into service>[...]

blog comments powered by Disqus



Advertisement

Advertisement

Podcasts

Advertisement

© 2007 - 2024 Web Development & Design by Pauli Systems, LC