Police Searching for Teslas Near Crimes to Seize Their Camera Footage

Tesla drivers who are "not involved at all" are being put in the "crosshairs of investigations."

Commandeering Cops

Police officers are scanning for Teslas that may have ambiently recorded nearby crimes on their external cameras — and even going as far as to attempt to tow the vehicles away to inspect the footage.

As the San Francisco Chronicle reports, a Canadian tourist almost had his Tesla confiscated by the Oakland Police Department because it may have witnessed a nearby homicide.

The incident highlights a troubling new trend in mass surveillance, with the EVs' "Sentry Mode" serving as a public-facing extension of law enforcement — whether Tesla owners want to be involved or not.

President of the Richmond Police Officers Association Ben Therriault told the Chronicle that officers usually attempt to ask for the owner's consent first, but sometimes resort to towing the vehicles anyway.

"I respectfully request that a warrant is authorized to seize this vehicle from the La Quinta Inn parking lot so this vehicle’s surveillance footage may be searched via an additional search warrant at a secure location," officer Kevin Godchaux wrote in his search warrant affidavit, as quoted by the newspaper.

In the Crosshairs

Unsurprisingly, civil rights groups are calling foul. Electronic Frontier Foundation staff attorney Saira Hussain told the Chronicle that police using Teslas "as a resource" puts "third parties — people who are not involved at all — in the crosshairs of investigations."

According to Tesla, Sentry Mode is designed to act as an "intelligent vehicle security system that alerts you when it detects possible threats nearby" — and as it turns out, it's not just threats to the vehicle itself.

Police have made ample use of the footage recorded by Tesla cameras in their investigations, according to the Chronicle's reporting, from burglaries to homicides.

And they're willing to go a long way to obtain the footage. For instance, one fatal shooting led to an Oakland police officer obtaining a search warrant to tow three vehicles, including a Tesla Model X, according to the paper.

The trend raises some thorny ethical questions. Should drivers really be put into a position where their vehicles serve as witnesses to a crime? Are the EVs serving as a crutch for otherwise ineffective law enforcement?

It's a troubling reminder of the pervasiveness of mass surveillance tech — and police are willing to take full advantage.

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