LANSING – The Michigan Corrections Organization wants to make it a felony to operate a drone within 1,000 feet of a correctional facility as two Michigan Senate bills seek to do after yet another drone was spotted flying over the Ionia Correctional Facility recently.
Department of Corrections spokesperson Chris Gautz confirmed a drone sighting at Ionia last week, saying this is at least the third incident this year of such a case. The two other instances happened in Jackson in which Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle toys made their way over the walls of the Charles Egeler Reception and Guidance Center where new state prisoners are held until assigned to another correctional facility.
The most recent drone flew over several units at the Ionia facility, the MCO said in a newsletter to its members, but then disappeared. The facility was placed on limited movement while staff covered the grounds in search of the item, but no contraband was found.
The organization said it has been advocating for SB 487 and SB 488, which would make it a felony to operate a drone within 1,000 feet of a correctional facility, but those bills have seen no movement in the Senate after being reported from the Senate Judiciary Committee in October 2015.
“There have been several sightings of unmanned aerial objects over Michigan prisons in recent months, underscoring the dire need for this legislation,” MCO said.
Sen. Darwin Booher (R-Evart), the sponsor of those bills, was not immediately available for comment.
A similar bill, HB 4868, has seen a little more movement in the Legislature. That bill would prohibit and prescribe a criminal penalty for knowingly operating an unmanned aerial vehicle in a manner that obstructed a public safety operation or interfered with the operation of certain facilities, or for the purpose of trespassing or committing a crime, a Senate Fiscal Agency analysis shows.
A violation would be a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year’s imprisonment and/or a maximum fine of $1,000.
But that bill has also been stalled in the Senate Judiciary Committee since February.
Gautz said the department does not have a particular position on any of the bills but is open to the concepts.
“We do recognize the security concerns posed by drones and appreciate the Legislature’s willingness to work on the issue,” Gautz said.
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