Can you shoot a drone down? What if it’s trespassing? We explain.
News of the "mystery drones" flying over regions of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and New York have prompted more questions from civilians about drone legalities, including: can you shoot down a drone?
As news of the “mystery drones” flying over regions of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and New York continues to spread with few answers surrounding who’s behind the aircraft, there are new questions about the drone legalities.
U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R., N.J.) released a statement Wednesday calling for the drones to be shot down. The practice is barred both for private citizens as well as state authorities because of federal restrictions. Van Drew did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“State authorities, including the New Jersey State Police, are shackled with what they are able to do,” said New Jersey Assemblywoman Dawn Fantasia in a post on X following a New Jersey State Police briefing about the drones Wednesday. “Any interception or takedown of any UAS [unmanned aircraft system] is under the strict jurisdiction of the federal government. ... At this point, I believe military intervention is the only path forward.”
Even before Van Drew’s statement, Google searches about shooting a drone surged over the last week, especially in the Northeast.
Here’s what to know about why you shouldn’t shoot drones.
So? Can you shoot a drone?
Let’s cut to the chase: No.
Shooting a drone is considered a federal crime. It can also be a state crime depending on where you live.
The Federal Aviation Administration says shooting any aircraft — including, but not limited to, drones — is illegal.
It’s also a safety hazard. An FAA spokesperson said shooting at an aircraft could cause it to crash, collide, or fall, which could cause damage. It’s also illegal and considered extremely dangerous to shoot into the sky in general because a bullet fired into the air will eventually fall back down.
What if a drone is over my property?
Doesn’t matter — still illegal.
Even if a drone is flying over your property, the FAA says, homeowners don’t own the airspace.
Airspace is overseen by the FAA, including the airspace over private land and property. So shooting a drone above your own home is still very much illegal.
Has it ever happened before?
Yep. Just last month, a retired New Jersey fire captain living in Florida accepted a plea deal after facing criminal charges for shooting at a Walmart delivery drone that was hovering over his Lake Worth home.
Dennis Winn, 72, told responding officers in June that he shot his 9mm pistol at the drone, court documents say. The two men who were operating the drone called police. When they questioned Winn, he said he “had past experiences with drones flying over his house and believed they were surveilling him.”
Police told Winn he would have to pay damages of up to $10,000. He responded that if he had to pay that much, he wanted to keep the drone — but that’s not how things work. The drone belonged to DroneUp Delivery, which was performing trial deliveries for Walmart.
Winn was charged with discharging a firearm in public and criminal mischief. He went to jail for a day and accepted a plea deal last month, agreeing to a pretrial intervention program that will drop the charges.
Last year, a Middletown Township, Bucks County, man who shot a police drone during an arrest was sentenced to 11 to 22 years in prison on gun and drug charges.
John Palaio Jr., 51, was already wanted by Middletown Township police for several charges in July 2022. Police used a drone to confirm Palaio was home when they attempted to serve him with an arrest warrant. Middletown police say Palaio shot the drone and damaged it before fleeing.
The Bucks County District Attorney’s Office said Palaio was arrested days later and was found guilty of 19 charges, including shooting the police drone.