The Denver Police Department has announced the initiation of a new program that will incorporate drones as a tool to assist officers in responding to 911 calls.

The development follows recent budget reallocations that directed millions of dollars from the department to fund migrant assistance programs.

A former Denver police chief, Robert White, had previously expressed opposition to the use of drones in 2013 and again in 2018, resulting in the department’s only drone being sidelined. The department is now reversing the stance.

The program is set to commence with a $100,000 grant from the Denver Police Foundation. The funding will be utilized to purchase multiple drones, with the initiative expected to be operational within the next six to 12 months.

“We would never simply replace calls-for-service response by police officers,” the director of the department’s Strategic Initiatives Bureau, Phil Gonshak, said in an interview with the Denver Post.

“The DPD would respond to any call for service where someone is physically requesting a police officer on scene,” he said. “But if there was a fight at Colfax and Cherokee and we put a drone in the air and there is no fight and nothing causing traffic issues, then we would reroute our police officers to other emergent calls.”

“The long-term scope of what we are trying to do is drones as first responders,” Mr. Gonshak said. “Basically, having stations on top of each one of our districts so we can respond with drones to critical needs or emergencies that arise throughout the city.”