Drones Used for Prison Smuggling

(Fall 2015) A fight recently broke out in an Ohio prison yard when over seven ounces of marijuana, tobacco and heroin were dropped by a drone. This is not an isolated incident. As drones are becoming cheaper and more available, they are increasingly being used to smuggle weapons, drugs and cell phones into correctional facilities.

Lawmakers and authorities are taking note. In Washington State, a senator proposed legislation that would tack on an additional year of jail time for an offender employing drones for illegal purposes, while in South Carolina towers have been built so correctional officers can detect drones. Drone manufacturers can be alerted to program their products not to fly over certain areas via a website database, and some correctional facilities are using a detection device called DroneShield. This scans for drones often used by smugglers and sends alert messages via mail or text.

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