Yesterday I recorded an interesting police action at River street and S. Inez in Missoula. Law enforcement appeared to be trying to arrest someone, and I assumed that this person must be dangerous, since I saw two cops prowling around a backyard with shields and guns. Also, near the end of my video, the use of a drone can clearly be seen.
Why?
The woman whose job it is to communicate with the public never responded to my email yesterday, so I’m not sure if anyone was arrested. I’m not even sure if the cops were involved in a real police action. Could this have been a training?
When I asked one of the cops about the drone, he said it was for their safety. Law enforcement is very worried about their safety, I’ve discovered. That’s why those ICE cops shot that woman in the face yesterday, and it’s why those four cops beat up Brandon Bryant. They are terrified, apparently.
The local use of drones was reported on in 2024, when that communication specialist who can’t respond to MY emails had this to say to the media:
Public Information Officer Whitney Bennett explained the police department’s plans for using drones. “So we plan on utilizing the drone program and our drones for multiple different purposes. As of right now, since we’re kind of in our beginning stages of having a successful drone program, we’re using it for more right now if there’s a fatal accident and getting aerial view of what’s going on,” Bennett said.
…
Training Officer Mike Thurlow described how the drone technology aids in rescue operations. “We have a screen that we can actually see things on. So the incident commander or somebody that’s running the rescue can say hey, freeze there, zoom in on that. So yeah, it’s pretty easy for us to fly. Technology has made it that way. So, so yeah, the more eyes on something like that. And on that TV screen, the better, for whatever we’re doing,” Thurlow said.
The cops yesterday were NOT trying to “rescue” someone, nor were they viewing a traffic accident. They had guns, shields, at least a half-dozen cop cars, and a bullhorn giving commands to what I assume was an unseen assailant. Hmmm.
When I spoke to someone at a local news station after I returned to my apartment a few blocks away, the reporter hadn’t heard anything come through on the police scanner. That’s when I started thinking this might have been a training.
How else can we keep our terrified law enforcers safe? I know!
Thanks for reading!
