HPD To Expand Drone Program

At the May 14th Council Public Safety Committee meeting, the Hayward Police Department unveiled plans to purchase eight additional drones for a Drone First Responder (DFR) Program. The DFR Program would dispatch autonomous drones to calls for service and, once there, a Community Safety Officer (CSO) would monitor the scene and provide information to inbound officers. Police Chief Bryan Matthews framed it as a technology solution to increase response times and address staffing shortages.

Crime Down Despite Reduced Police Force

The Hayward Police Department is the largest department in the City of Hayward, with approximately 330 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) Employees. Despite having 20 or more sworn officer vacancies for the past year, Police Chief Bryan Matthews presented data indicating that crime had decreased by more than 20% in some categories. Comparing April 2024 through March 2025 to April 2025 through March 2026, Crimes Against Property were down over 20%. Crimes Against Persons were up slightly, though Chief Matthews explained that this may be due to a change in how those crimes are defined--for example, Brandishing A Weapon is now considered Aggravated Assault, when it was not in past years.

Of note, Crimes Against Society increased over 25% compared to the year prior. In the Crime Reporting spreadsheet presented to the Committee, only Drug/Narcotics and Weapons violations were highlighted, but they accounted for less than 70% of the total violations. The remainder were not listed.

According to the Uniform Crime Reporting Program from the FBI, the crimes which fall under Crimes Against Society include:

• Drug/Narcotic Offenses
• Gambling Offenses (betting, operating, sports tampering, etc.)
• Prostitution Offenses
• Weapon Law Violations
• Curfew/Loitering/Vagrancy Violations
• Disorderly Conduct
• DUIs/Drunkenness
• Nonviolent Family Offenses
• Trespassing

Trends for most of these categories are unknown based on the presentation from Chief Matthews.

These reductions were celebrated by Mayor Mark Salinas. "Even in our budget situation that we've been in for the last year," he said, "we've still been able to reduce crime." When asked if the reduction was regional, Chief Matthews said, "People are seeing reductions." However, he attributed it to the work of HPD staff and the software and technology which had been purchased. Chief Matthews appeared to tie more arrests to crime reduction, though research suggests targeting social and environmental conditions that lead to criminal activity may be more effective.

Staffing Shortages

Chief Matthews said that budget constraints and staffing shortages have limited HPD's ability to do community outreach events. Despite this, members of the HPD still attended almost a dozen community engagement events between January and March. These included pedestrian safety discussions at three HUSD elementary schools, neighborhood watch meetings, community meetings, and the Baristas with Badges program.

The Hayward Animal Shelter is also under the umbrella of the HPD and, according to Chief Matthews, is down to a single Animal Control Officer. The Shelter responded to almost 700 calls for service, took in over 280 animals, and attended seven community and adoption events between January and March. This was due almost entirely to the over 2,000 hours of volunteer work contributed by the community.

HPD's sworn officer vacancies have increased slightly, with 27 sworn officer vacancies and 20% of the sworn workforce unavailable. However, recruitment is ongoing and 5 trainees graduated the academy on May 11th, one graduating in August, and more candidates on the way for the September academy.

Street Vendor Enforcement Lacks Resources

According to the presentation, HPD participated in three street vendor enforcement activities between January and March with the Code Enforcement Division. Councilmember Ray Bonilla asked what the results of the enforcement actions had been, but Chief Matthews said there was no data.

City Manager Jennifer Ott said, "It's a really difficult issue to enforce because they are mobile." But the city is exploring different enforcement strategies because vendors frequently return after enforcement. "Is the juice worth the squeeze when we already have limited resources in this space?" Councilmember Bonilla asked.

Mayor Mark Salinas said that he receives emails from residents complaining of vendors, but admitted that public sentiment is mixed. His primary concern appeared to be optics. "I certainly wouldn't want our police officers out there doing enforcement--particularly too heavily--because a the end of the day, they'll end up on social media and it just looks bad," he said.

Mixed Messages On Homelessness

The addition of REGIS Village to the city has caused concern among some Council members. Councilmember Julie Roche worried about the impact on HPD of an increased call volume. Chief Matthews said that HPD is collecting data on "collateral calls for service" due to REGIS Village, but Councilmember Roche did not like a wait-and-see approach. "If this aren't working now and we don't put something in place now then it's going to be too late," she said.

Mayor Salinas, meanwhile, said his central focus was Weekes Park. "We really gotta make sure Weekes Park is cleared and cleaned," he said, alleging people are scared to visit the park or even the nearby Weekes Branch library. The presentation showed that, between January and March, HPD went to Weekes Park for 59 incidents, ranging from mental health assessments to weapons possession, as well as 31 proactive security checks.

HPD also participated in multiple encampment clearances in the three month period, presumably as part of the city's new Encampment Abatement strategy. However, this casts doubt over how the 21% reduction in homelessness was achieved. In 2024, the city celebrated an increase in the number of unhoused people who were sheltered, but detailed data for this year's Point In Time (PIT) Count is not yet available.

HPD Requests More Drones Under AB481

Chief Matthews presented the annual AB481 Military Equipment Inventory to the Council Public Safety Committee.

Of the numerous pieces of military equipment possessed by HPD, the only two were used over the course of the last year (April 2025 - March 2026):

• UAS (Drones) - 62 deployments for 61 incidents
• Armored Personnel Carrier (APC) - 14 uses

However, advocates for police demilitarization have pressed government agencies to require data on deployments as well as uses. For example, none of the 113 carbine rifles were used, but are standard issue for Officers and were likely deployed hundreds of times.

The total cost of military equipment over the last year, including acquisition, training, and maintenance, was just over $670,000--a mere 0.6% of HPD's $103,090,230 budget.

Drones As First Responders

The HPD is requesting permission to purchase 8 drones which will autonomously fly to calls for service to provide "real-time, critical information to police officers and firefighters," according to the presentation. The Drones as First Responders (DFRs) would be piloted by Community Safety Officers (CSOs) under supervision, and provide "Undeniable Safety/Efficiency Benefits," according to the presentation. Among the alleged benefits are increased efficiency, increased offender apprehension, and increased safety of officers, firefighters, and the community.

A pilot program was provided by Axon, vendor of the dashboard-mounted cameras used in HPD squad cars. Over the 4 week trial, the drones responded over 300 times and visually cleared over 100 calls before officers arrived--the log shows an enormous increase in drone usage during March and April. The DFR flights provide no information as to the nature of the call.

The program would cost just under $590,000 per year for five years and would use a combination of funding sources to eliminate impact on the General Fund. The CSO positions would be reassigned from jail duty, which has seen decreased use in recent years.

Everyone Supports More Drones

Councilmembers Roche and Bonilla asked a number of questions about privacy and data security, all of which is in line with the existing drone policy and data retention plan for Axon. Chief Matthews reassured the committee that the DFRs would be reactive, not used for random surveillance, and do not have facial recognition. However, it is unclear if facial recognition software could be used on footage after the fact. "I absolutely see the impact of this technology," Councilmember Roche said.

Councilmember Bonilla asked about data sharing and Chief Matthews said that although they can't share with ICE directly due to state law, they do have data sharing agreements with other local and federal agencies. "We do have a need to collaborate with the federal government," Chief Matthews said.

Chief Matthews also said the DFRs can't breach or go into houses, but said that HPD has other drones that can. He also said that DFRs have thermal imaging technology--a Captain referenced being able to see a thermal trail--and spotlights for use in the dark. "I also support this program," Councilmember Bonilla said. "I think it's going to be a great addition to helping improve the safety of our community. This is a really creative solution."

Fire Chief Ryan Hamre also supported the drones and their place in the Police Department. "When we have these applications, our people are pretty much all hands on deck," he said. "If we have that significant event, none of our personnel are available to put up a drone."

This purchase would add to the surveillance network throughout the City of Hayward, including the more than 50 Flock cameras on our streets. "These are the types of technology that greatly improve the chances of the outcomes we all want," Police Chief Matthews said of the drones.