--- title: "The Number of Drones Being Deployed to Surveil Anti-Trump Protestors Is Staggering" description: "The LAPD deployed an astonishing number of surveillance drones to watch over peaceful demonstrations, a new investigation found." date: "2026-04-25" modified: "2026-04-25" authors: - name: "Joe Wilkins" job_title: "Correspondent" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jwilkins" url: "https://futurism.com/future-society/lapd-drones-surveillance" categories: - "Drones" - "Future Society" - "Privacy" - "Robotics" - "Robots and Machines" --- # The Number of Drones Being Deployed to Surveil Anti-Trump Protestors Is Staggering ![Black and gray police drone with four propellers and a camera mounted on the front, set against a bright red background with a yellow circle behind it. The word "POLICE" is printed in bold black letters on white strips attached to the drone's arms.]() *Illustration by Tag Hartman-Simkins / Futurism. Source: Arnold Jerocki / Getty Images* Police drones are fast becoming a fact of life across the United States, where they're showing up in podunk towns, sprawling cities, and everywhere in between. So far, media coverage tends to highlight their role in [finding lost puppies]() or [catching cat burglars]() in the act. In Los Angeles, however, drones are increasingly being used to surveil peaceful anti-Trump protestors — an ominous preview, in all likelihood, of things to come nationwide. According to new [reporting by the *Intercept*,]() the Los Angeles Police Department launched drones at least 31 separate times during a single "ICE Out" protest on January 31st, which culminated in the arrest of at least [50 demonstrators]() after the LAPD issued an order to disperse at around 9:30pm. A few months later at the March 28 "No Kings" demonstration protesting Donald Trump, the LAPD launched 32 surveillance drones. Though police didn't issue an order to disperse until 5:30pm, flight data viewed by the *Intercept* shows that drone coverage of the peaceful demonstration began at 2pm and continued on until 9pm that night (the LAPD ultimately arrested 75 people.) When the publication approached the LAPD for comment on the massive number of surveillance flights, LAPD lieutenant Matthew Jacobs insisted that "we do not document or record unless there is a crime occurring." "When it comes to a protest or demonstration, we're responding \[with drones\] at the request of the incident commander. We're looking for specific people, we're not taping first amendment activity," Jacobs continued. Paradoxically, he added that sometimes the department launches drones to "see how big a crowd is." According to [some estimates](), there are now more than 1,500 police agencies in the US deploying drones in some way. As these programs grow bolder, mass aerial surveillance threatens to become routine — as privacy protections [remain]() [way behind](). **More on police surveillance:** **[AI Surveillance Systems Are Causing a Staggering Number of Wrongful Arrests]()** ## Author At Futurism, I focus on the intersection of technology and power — examining the economics, history, and politics behind today’s dystopian headlines. As a writer, I’m interested in topics ranging from AI’s impact on labor to startups nobody asked for. My prior work includes bylines in Jacobin, Verso, and Blue Labyrinths. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Forbes, The Guardian, MIT Technology Review, Time, The Nation, Mother Jones, The Verge, and Wired. I grew up in Michigan, attending Central Michigan University as well as Ball State University, where I earned a master of music. I now live in Brooklyn with my girlfriend and our cat Ziti. On weekends, you can find me hunched over a cold pint arguing geopolitics with the other transplants. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()