FBI Surveilling U.S. With Drones

[TargeT]

The last organization I worked for was a "Battle field surveillance brigade" we used to fly drones; and as a "federal agency" we had to be very careful about their use (though the attitude of most operators was not that we had to be very careful, but that laws (Posse Comitatus Act) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Posse_Comitatus_Act) that put restrictions on us were a "Pain in the ass" and the job would be "easier" without them).

We could fly our missions and if we "happened" to observe activity we could pass it off to local authorities, but we couldn't specifically follow civilian targets.

Apparently I just worked for the wrong agency, the FBI can do this with no issues.....




FBI Director Robert Mueller said today the bureau was surveilling the United States with drones.

http://i.huffpost.com/gen/1023132/thumbs/r-DRONE-large570.jpg?6

The revelation was during an FBI oversight hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee and comes as the bureau, along with the National Security Agency, are on the defensive about revelations that they are obtaining metadata on Americans’ phone records and Americans’ private data from companies like Google, Facebook, Microsoft and others.

The FBI is not alone in monitoring the U.S. with drones.

Federal agencies use them to survey U.S. borders. Dozens of local law enforcement agencies nationwide deploy the unmanned crafts. Some of the agencies include the Miami-Dade Police Department and the Texas Department of Public Safety.

“Our footprint is very small. We have very few,” Mueller said in response to an inquiry on unmanned aircraft by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa).

Grassley asked: “Does the FBI own or currently use drones and for what purposes?”

“Yes, for surveillance.”

Grassley continued: “Does the FBI use drones for surveillance on U.S. soil?”

“Yes, in a very, very minimal way, and seldom.”

http://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/microdrones-flying-legally-in-Czech-Republic-640x327.jpg

Moments later, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-California) said drones were a huge privacy threat to Americans. The director was unprepared to answer Feinstein’s questions on what “privacy strictures” are in place to protect Americans’ privacy in connection to FBI drone use.

Still, Mueller said the drone program “is very narrowly focused on particularized cases and particularized leads.”

The bureau had employed drones to monitor a kidnapping scene in Alabama in February, when the FBI rescued a 5-year-old boy from a bunker, unnamed sources told CNN at the time.


http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2013/06/fbi-drones/

[Cidersomerset]

FBI admits to drones Surveilling Americans

Q44lbUpP3NA

Published on 19 Jun 2013


Outgoing FBI Director Robert Muller made history at a Senate Judiciary Committee
hearing today. For the first time ever, an FBI official has gone on the record to
acknowledge the use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles in American airspace for surveillance.
Perhaps more surprisingly, when Senator Chuck Grassley asked Director Muller about
policies, procedures and limits the FBI sets for using drones on U.S. soil, Muller
admitted that at this point, the FBI has none. RT Correspondent Meghan Lopez takes a
closer look at today's hearing.

[Tesla_WTC_Solution]

Hello there!

I was looking at this too, and it crossed my mind that LOTS of gov'ts (ours and in EU especially) are really beefing up their drone rosters,
but at the same time, they are letting the police and related agencies fall under such scrutiny for employing smaller drones (not the kind that blow up houses) that equipment already purchased is being grounded and unused.

I guess drones are the new nukes: some people will be for disarmament and it will never happen, whereas others will insist that we "have to keep up with the Joneses" (except this time Europe is the Joneses) for our own safety's sake.

What I want to know is WHO and WHEN, WHY and HOW, people access drones of ALL shapes and sizes,
and what is being done by the gov't to defend the use of small drones over domestic airspace while at the same time restricting the use of overtly weaponized full size war drones.


It's kind of like guns, too. Should everyone have a gun or just some people?
Should the military have drones, or do civilian agencies get drones too?

it's definitely food for thought!

p.s. there was a big huge drone article in the Seattle Weekly this month.

p.p.s. maybe police and FBI should have to disclose the # of drones they are using, and the military should too -- we don't even know what we are fighting against!

[Tesla_WTC_Solution]

Hey there Target, we are also discussing this in http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?60259-FBI-admits-to-drones-Surveilling-Americans!

Sorry I missed your thread before replying to the newer one;

maybe the mods will combine them?

It's interesting that we have this conflict between the military, the police and FBI, and the people.
Local authorities are pulling the teeth of many police forces etc. removing their license to use purchased mini-drones,
whereas our gov't still acquires and produces war drones for the military...

there seems to be a widening gap between the rights of the military and the civilian police forces due to this strange thing called "national security".
the military has all this crazy hardware and the obligation to use it as commanded, whereas the local mayor can strip a police force of the right to use a drone-mounted-camera.


isn't it weird?

p.s. i think the police should use the drones to spy on Boeing and other traitorous companies.

[ghostrider]

what advantage does it give the government to watch us, listen to us, or track our internet footprint ??? we are just free people living our lives and trying to make do with the scaps we have leftover after uncle baby daddy gets done handing out freebies to the lazy, ignorant , always procreating young people with cell phones superglued to their idle hands ... I can't believe I'm in america ... I shoulda went to Brazil ...spanish people are cool, and still have a sense of family and honor ...

[crosby]

what advantage does it give the government to watch us, listen to us, or track our internet footprint ??? we are just free people living our lives and trying to make do with the scaps we have leftover after uncle baby daddy gets done handing out freebies to the lazy, ignorant , always procreating young people with cell phones superglued to their idle hands ... I can't believe I'm in america ... I shoulda went to Brazil ...spanish people are cool, and still have a sense of family and honor ...

it could be that this scenario is really taking place in the background:

http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?60183-Evacuate-Earth--National-Geographic-Documentary-

and they don't want to have to haggle with us useless eaters. i know that this documentary is fairly shallow, but at the same time, i also know that something else is going on in the background. and, it could very well be that they are doing it just because they can.
warmest regards, corson