Iowa lawmakers looking to stay one step ahead in the game of drones are drafting legislation to prohibit the operation of unmanned aerial vehicles over jails and prisons. Drones pose a security threat to prisons, as a means to smuggle contraband and dangerous weapons.
Lawmakers are being spurred to action by reports that drones have been used to drop drugs, cellphones and other contraband inside prison grounds, said Rep. Jarad Klein, R-Keota. Two examples of such incidents include when a drone crash landed at a Georgia prison and when a drone crashed into a prison yard in Arizona. Prison officials are concerned drones could be used to smuggle weapons into a prison. And while the Iowa Department of Corrections has reported no incidents, a spokesman said drones had been observed near or over prisons.
Klein acknowledges the ban on drones over prisons would be hard to enforce but said he aims to give prosecutors a tool to use if the drone operator is identified and apprehended. Iowa is not alone in considering drone-related legislation. Last year, 38 state legislatures had such proposals, with 17 passing 23 pieces of legislation.
In some states, officials are looking into installing prison drone detection systems, and some officials predict this will be a standard part of prison security. The Department of Correction has looked into drone detection technology and will stay in touch with other state prison systems as it researches and tests such systems, spokesman Cort Overton said.