As he promised, Congressman Chris Smith introduced legislation Friday that would empower highly trained state law enforcement units to detect and stop any drones involved in unlawful activities. Follows Through
Smith’s bill—the Law Against Nefarious Drones, Enforcement, Deconfliction (LANDED) Act—comes in response to a request from Monmouth County Sheriff Shaun Golden and Ocean County Sheriff Mike Mastronardy for more authorities to respond to potential threats posed by illegal drone activity amid the ongoing unusual drone sightings across New Jersey.
“As swarms of unidentified drones have violated our airspace over the past month, our state law enforcement leaders have been precluded by law from taking more decisive action, leaving our highly trained officers—who are on the ground and situationally aware—almost completely hamstrung,” said Smith.
The legislation is designed in response to the gaps that exist in the nation’s ability to counter unlawful drones which have been exposed by the unusual activity occurring across our state.
Smith said the Biden Administration’s frustrating lack of response to the month-long unusual drone activity in New Jersey underscores the urgent need to empower state law enforcement to address any potential immediate threats to local communities.
“New Jersey residents should not have to live in fear while unidentified drones continue to fly over our critical infrastructure, sensitive military bases, and homes and communities,” said Smith. “Enough is enough.”
The latest version of this release may be viewed at:
https://chrissmith.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=413471
