Recently, prisons have faced a huge security threat in the form of drones that are being used by criminals to deliver drugs, phones, dangerous weapons, and other contraband to prisons.  Consequently, the state of California recently passed a law that outlaws any drone flights above correctional facilities. Gov. Jerry Brown signed the bill on Monday that makes any operation of drones over California prisons a crime punishable by a $500 fine.

The bill was introduced a few months ago by Senator Jerry Hill, who noted that although it was already illegal to smuggle contraband into correctional facilities, there is no law that caters to the growing number of cases where drones have been used to deliver contraband into prisons. The new law applies to jails, prisons, and juvenile detention centers.  One member of the Senator’s staff explained that even though the penalty seems relatively light, it will provide prosecutors with an extra legal avenue in cases where a suspected smuggler is caught but the evidence of the contraband is missing. The new law is in line with the FAA’s new flight restrictions that prohibit drone flights over Coastguard Facilities and Federal Prisons.

With more people finding it easy to access drones in recent years, there have been numerous cases of drones being spotted dropping contraband into correctional facilities both in the US and abroad. Earlier this year, officers at the Kern Valley State Prison captured a drone that was carrying a sack with heroin, methamphetamine, phones, SIM cards, chargers, hacksaw blades, and headphones. The following day, the officers found more bags with even more contraband.  According to state reports, there have been over 45 drone incidents between June 2017 and May 2018, which is when they started keeping track. In May, the state of California started a $35,000 program to stop drone smuggling and assemble a task force comprising of IT staff which would be called the Unmanned Aerial Systems Unit.

The officials are yet to disclose which prisons will be used for the tests in order to maintain the program’s security. A state selected vendor will provide the technology needed to detect incoming drones and an alarm system that notifies staff.  Similar efforts have launched or are being considered in other states. In Ohio, Prison administrators reported in 2017 that they were installing a similar system that will also be able to disable nearby drones. It’s just a matter of time that all prison systems put precautions in place to prevent further incidents.