From Sen. Donald McEachin’s Facebook page, I think these are some interesting questions, in light of what Del. Scott Surovell points out (“Kentucky man shoots down drone hovering over his backyard”). Here are Sen. McEachin’s questions. Also, see Del. Surovell’s comments after Sen. McEachin’s.
Opinions please! I think you should be able to protect your property if someone (not the state assuming it has a lawful order) has a drone hovering over your property. But what legnth of time constitutes a hover? Is it ok for a drone to pass over your back yard (or front yard) on the way to somewhere else? Are there any rules for if it is just passing over how low it may go? Can you imagine a drone buzzing through your back yard during a picnic? At eye level? If a drone is hovering over your property and you destroy it are you liable to your neighbor for any debri that might damage a neighbor’s yard. Time to have a conversation with legislative services.
Del. Surovell: “I predicted this last week at the Drone & Space Law Conference in Wise, VA. I said if you fly one of these over private property outside of NOVA, it’s likely to get shot down. People laughed but I was serious. We need to clarify this area of the law soon.”
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