United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has confirmed it is flying Predator drones over Los Angeles amid ongoing protests. According to CBP, these military-caliber drones are providing “aerial support to our federal law enforcement partners in the Greater Los Angeles area, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE),” assisting with their operations.
While it is common for local and state agencies—such as police and firefighting departments—to use drones and helicopters for surveillance and public safety, the CBP's MQ-9 Reaper (also known as Predator B) drones are distinctly military hardware. Originally designed for high-altitude reconnaissance and potentially equipped for combat, their presence in US airspace blurs the boundary between military and civilian law enforcement.
This is not the first instance of CBP Predator drones being deployed above American cities. In 2020, during the protests following the murder of George Floyd, the Trump administration directed a Predator drone to fly over Minneapolis. Researchers have since tracked other Department of Homeland Security Predator drone flights over various US cities, raising concerns around government transparency and oversight.
What makes the current Los Angeles deployment especially significant is the broader federal response: President Trump has escalated the federal presence in California, deploying over 700 active-duty Marines and federalizing almost 4,000 National Guard members despite opposition from Governor Gavin Newsom. The inclusion of Predator drones highlights the federal government’s willingness to assert authority over incidents historically managed at the state level, fueling debates about federal overreach and the erosion of local control.
Matthew Feeney, a civil liberties and technology expert at Big Brother Watch, notes, “Military gear has been used for domestic law enforcement for a long time, but flying military gear over LA at a time when the president has sent military units against the wishes of the governor is noteworthy. If the federal government portrays immigration as a national security issue, we shouldn’t be surprised if it openly uses military hardware in response.”
Predator drones employ powerful surveillance cameras and sensors capable of recording clear, detailed footage from significant heights. According to CBP, their Air and Marine Operations (AMO) were only “providing aerial support” as requested to enhance “situational awareness and officer safety.”
However, privacy advocates remain skeptical. Patrick Eddington, a homeland security and civil liberties expert at the Cato Institute, warns, “The more the protests spread to other cities, the more of that kind of surveillance we’ll see.”
CBP insists that AMO “is not engaged in the surveillance of First Amendment activities,” pointing to a 2015 Department of Homeland Security policy stating that unmanned drone footage should not be collected for the purpose of monitoring constitutionally protected protest activities.
Still, researchers argue that the line between law enforcement support and the monitoring of protests is faint at best. Even under the guise of aiding federal or local law enforcement, advanced aerial surveillance risks amassing protest images and data that could be used for functions never intended by lawmakers.
UAV policy researcher Faine Greenwood remarks, “It’s not new or all that unexpected from a spooked administration, but it’s still a terrible use of military technology on civilian populations. It’s a worrying trend, and people should refuse to normalize it.”
In summary, CBP’s ongoing Predator drone flights over Los Angeles reveal the government’s increasing willingness to deploy military-grade surveillance technology in civilian contexts, raising urgent questions about civil liberties, oversight, and the balance of federal and state power.
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