In this beach town, sometimes the first cop on the scene is a drone

When someone calls 911 for police in the upscale beach town of Santa Monica, California, a drone is dispatched from the roof of the station with a push of a button.

Officers respond, as well. But most of the time, the drone gets there first — rushing to a set of GPS coordinates punched in by the controller. Sometimes it is there in as fast as 30 seconds.

“It’s a fundamental change in the way that we can bring policing services to our city,” said Peter Lashley, a veteran of the force who often pilots the drone from a screen-filled command center inside the police station.

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https://www.nbcnews.com/news/crime-courts/police-drone-911-crime-scene-santa-monica-california-rcna75954