BRYAN COUNTY, Ga () – The Bryan County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) is using drones to catch drivers breaking the law behind the wheel.

The agency invested in drones several years ago, mainly using them to assist in search and rescue missions. Recently, the office made the decision to start using drones for more than just that. For example, to catch drivers breaking the law.

“The easiest way for those guys to be able to do that is, you know, wait till the vehicles, all the vehicles come into an intersection, and then they just kind of fly down, kind of down the side of the vehicles and just kind of visually check each one to see if there’s a seatbelt on or if somebody is riding in up to the to the crossroad with a phone in their hand,” Bryan County Sheriff Mark Crowe said.

The drone captures a picture of a violator, then an officer is deployed to pull over the vehicle. It is leaving some Bryan County commuters like David Graf questioning the legality.

“I think it’s a misallocation of funds and a breach of privacy,” Graf said. “Can they just do it the old school way?  You know, there’s a line of sight. Will that hold up in court? I don’t know. I know there’s issues with the red-light cameras and other technology.”

Crowe responded to those concerns said they received the green light from the solicitor’s office.

“It is really no different than a camera being on the side of the road, taking a picture of you running a red light or a camera being on the side of the road, taking a picture of you speeding through the school zones,” said Crowe.

He continued, “The same people who are arguing against it would be some of the same people who pull out their cell phone and start recording you in public and say, ‘it’s not a privacy issue. I can record wherever I want to’. You have a phone that has a camera, I have a drone that has a camera.”

Crowe said because of the uptick in accidents in Richmond Hill and around the Hyundai Plant, it’s crucial to have physical presence.

“We are not out here trying to invade people’s privacy at all,” he said. “What we’re trying to do is accomplish a goal. We want the public to be safer. I want them to know that we’re out there looking.”

In the growing county, Crowe said safety initiatives like this one are needed now more than ever.