Police using drones to crack down on reckless e-bike riders in Gilbert

GILBERT, Ariz. - E-bikes are one of the most hotly debated topics throughout the Valley. But one police department is changing the way they crack down on people—mainly teenagers—who use them unsafely. 

The backstory:

Drones can be used for just about anything, from forming shapes in the sky, light shows and even delivering packages. But Gilbert Police have found a new role for the flying objects— first responder.

On Facebook groups in Gilbert, it's common to see someone calling out teenagers for riding e-bikes recklessly. Gilbert Police respond to these calls all the time, but they’re not pursuing these kids in squad cars these days. They’re letting technology take the lead.

"Some of them go upwards of 50, 60 miles an hour," said Officer Travis Sheppard with the police department.

And when you put teens and e-bikes together, Sheppard said things can get dangerous.

"You put that on a roadway and you put that with certain judgment decision-making where there's vehicles as well. There's pedestrians. Frankly, it's scary," Sheppard said.

What we know:

"As calls are coming in, the drones are flying out to get on scene and start getting actionable intelligence for the decision-making process to be sped along so we can actually figure out what to do before we even get there," said Lt. Geoff Soderman with the police department said.

The department is wrapping up its second "Drones as First Responders" pilot program. Among the many advantages, Soderman said the devices simply get to scenes faster when seconds matter.

"They were getting on scene 35% faster than patrol units and on scene about five to six minutes faster, which is getting essential information out to the responding patrol units," Soderman said.

They also keep officers out of harm’s way.

"They're going to be putting themselves in dangerous situations, which, yes, that's what we signed up to do for. But if we can mitigate some of that risk, the drones can do that," Soderman said.

Local perspective:

The drones have helped find an armed suspect hiding from police.

"We use that technology in the thermal to locate the suspect. Let them know, ‘We found you. Come out to us, we see you.’ Now we're dictating the time and the terrain and how we're actually going to handle that situation. Hopefully to eliminate any type of use of force and de-escalate the situation," Soderman said.

They’ve even de-escalated things with a suspect threatening to hurt themselves.

"The drones overhead was able to see that there was no weapon, there was no firearm, there was no knife, and really helped the officer to be able to de-escalate before they get involved in that use of force," Soderman said.

Soderman said it’s technology that’s revolutionizing not just law enforcement, but public safety in Gilbert.

"More intelligence, more information you get just leads to better decision making," Soderman said.

Why you should care:

Officer Sheppard said too many e-bike-related tragedies are preventable.

"That's the worst news that we bring to families is that your loved one's been seriously injured or has been killed," Sheppard said.

As the department works to make the streets safer, it’s deploying drones to make the act of pursuing reckless e-bike riders safer as well.

"We like to say we like to track and guide, not chase. So it allows us from the air to have eyes," Sheppard said. "We're able to pinpoint where these riders are. It allows us to guide our officers to where these groups or these individual riders are and then allows us to do that safely without chasing them."

Dig deeper:

Sheppard said the drones are particularly useful for breaking up large groups of teens on e-bikes. Officers can figure out where the offenders are and make contact with them via the drone, then track them safely as the riders disperse.

"That allows us to kind of identify maybe a couple of them and allow us from the air to track them safely. And then our officers on the ground are guided into where they're at, kind of where they bed down or hide," Sheppard said.

They’re able to do it all at a lower risk to the riders, the officers, and anyone else in the area.

"It literally allows us to slow down everything and not get in a situation where what we call where we're pushing somebody," Sheppard said.

What's next:

Gilbert Police aren't just using these drones on the e-bikes, but are able to act as first responders in all kind of situations, even ones that save lives. Gilbert Fire and Rescue are getting in on the action, using drones to pinpoint thermal hotspots in a fire to find people, and even do initial medical evaluations.

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