ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - A private company wants to see the use of drones to catch criminals in St. Louis, but it will face pushback from the St. Louis Mayor.
Recently, A film company called SMS Novel from Washington, D.C. wants to test drones cameras in Gravois Park early next year to see if they can deter crime at night.
SMS founder Jomo Johnson told KMOX's partner FOX 2 his company is training pilots in St. Louis to fly drones that can be equipped with lights and loudspeakers.
“Think about it: you’re able to cover a two square mile radius. How huge is that?," said Johnson. "After about two weeks, we’ll collect and gather information, talk to residents, gather their response to see if it’s beneficial, and also, we hope to work with law enforcement, too.”
However, Mayor Tishaura Jones is against the use of drones to catch criminals when asked about it Monday after she signed the senior property tax freeze bill.
"Absolutely not," said Mayor Jones. "We want to make sure any surveillance is deployed in a responsible way."
Mayor Jones says her administration is having discussions right now regarding rules when it comes to regulating cameras.
"To make sure whatever type of surveillance is deployed in our community is deployed in responsible and keeps people's rights in the center," said Jones.