San Francisco wants to allow the use of killer robots in the event of a terrorist attack or shooting

San Francisco plans to allow its cops to use killer robots, a controversial decision defended by police in the US city of California this Thursday as a “last resort.”

The San Francisco City Council voted 8 to 3 on Tuesday to pass a resolution calling for law enforcement to use robots capable of killing in certain extreme cases, such as terrorist attacks or massacres, which are very common in the US.

Save lives option

“The use of robots in potentially lethal situations is a last resort,” San Francisco Police Chief William Scott said in a statement. “We live in a time when mass violence is becoming more frequent,” he stressed. “We need this option to save lives if a similar tragedy happens in our city. »

The San Francisco Police Department currently has several robots purchased between 2010 and 2017 that they can control remotely. They are used “during bomb threats, hazardous materials and other incidents where police officers must keep their distance before securing the scene,” according to the statement, which indicates that only senior police officers can issue orders to use the robot for assassination.

The new measure would allow robots to be used to place an “explosive charge” capable of “incapacitating or disorienting an armed or dangerous suspected abuser who threatens to take his life,” police said. “Robots so equipped will only be used to save innocent lives,” the police said.

For opponents – “militarization” of the police

The decision, which has yet to be finalized by the city council scheduled for Dec. 6, is hotly contested, according to the New York Times. Its opponents fear that this will lead to increased police violence and a future worthy of the Terminator films.

“This is a terrible policy, the exact opposite of how the police should use robots,” Paul Charré, vice president of the Washington-based think tank Center for a New American Security, tweeted.

“The advantage of robots is that they create a greater distance between law enforcement and the threat precisely so that they do not have to resort to lethal force,” he added, stressing that the police can use many means to neutralize the attacker, not killing him. such as stun guns, flashlights, tear gas, etc.

For him, the San Francisco decision, which other cities are likely to follow, “is a new example of the militarization of the American police force,” he denounced.