This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The Utah House voted Tuesday to remove some restrictions they created last year on how police may use aerial drones. At the same time, one lawmaker said he'd like to use a shotgun to blast any drones he sees over his property.
HB296 passed 63-10 and was sent to the Senate.
It would allow police to use drones without first obtaining a search warrant for search and rescue operations in areas where privacy is not expected, such as in public forests and lands.
It would also allow use without a warrant for training in areas limited to 3 square miles where there are no occupied structures.
The bill's sponsor, Rep. Scott Sandall, R-Tremonton, said Box Elder County is building a training range for drones, but found police statewide had little interest in it or drones because a search warrant is normally required for their use — so he introduced his bill.
During debate, Rep. Mike Noel, R-Kanab, asked what rights individuals have if they see drones hovering over their property without having been served with a search warrant.
"Would you be able to take out your 12-gauge shotgun and shoot it out of the sky?" he asked. Sandall said Noel would probably need to bring it up with police, but under questioning said he personally didn't care what Noel did.
So Noel proclaimed, "It's open season on unmanned aerial vehicles flying over your house."
— Lee Davidson