In photo, the Draganfly x-6. From [HERE] Seattle Police Department is 1 of 50 organizations in the country that has been granted permission from the federal government to start using unmanned aerial vehicles, also known as drones.

The Draganflyer X-6 drone will be fitted with surveillance cameras as well as an infrared “eye” that can see in the dark. In February, President Obama signed a bill that will allow as many as 30,000 drones to be flown by anyone from police to the Department of Homeland Security, within the United States.

This announcement is already causing concern by local citizens as well as the ACLU of Washington.

“Police drones have valuable uses, but they also provide an unprecedented ability for the government to engage in surveillance of the activities of law-abiding people,” said ACLU-WA Executive Director Kathleen Taylor. ACLU-WA is asking the city of Seattle to produce transparent and clear policies for when and how the drones will be used.

The Sky Valley Chronicle also pointed out that the SPD, after an 11 month probe, was found by the U.S. Justice Department to have engaged in “a pattern or practice of excessive force (against Non-Whites) that violates the Constitution and federal law,” without even having drones yet.

Even more troublesome is the recently discovered Air Force intelligence brief that states that if drones "accidentally" capture surveillance footage of Americans, the data can be stored and analyzed by the Pentagon for up to 90 days.