Border state law enforcement to shoot down 'weaponized' drug-smuggling drones
A newly-minted law allowing Arizona law enforcement officers to shoot down drug-carrying drones along the U.S.-Mexico border has taken effect after sailing through the state’s legislature with bipartisan support.
HB 2733 was signed into law on April 18 and grants officers the ability to target drones suspected of carrying out illegal activity within 15 miles of the state’s international border.
"Cartels are increasingly using drones to survey the border to locate [U.S. Customs and Border Protection] officers' locations and to transport illegal drugs from Mexico into our state," state Rep. David Marshall, the bill’s sponsor, said in a statement to Fox News Digital. "Law enforcement tools at [our] disposal will be electronic jamming devices, as well as using shotguns with bird shot to bring down these drones."
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Between October 2024 and April 2025, approximately 113,000 pounds of illegal drugs have been seized along the U.S.-Mexico border, with methamphetamine accounting for the majority of findings, according to data from CBP.
Prior to the bill being passed, officers were unable to intercept drones suspected of participating in illegal activities, including transporting drugs such as fentanyl, across the southern border.
The law also protects officers from being held civilly liable for any damage caused by intercepting the drone.
"A public entity or public employee is not liable to an unmanned aircraft operator for any injury to personal property caused by a peace officer intercepting, capturing, disabling, shooting, destroying or otherwise rendering inoperative an unmanned aircraft within 15 miles of the state’s international border if the peace officer had a reasonable suspicion that the unmanned aircraft was being used to commit a violation of Title 13, Chapter 23, 34 or 34.1," the bill states.
"Giving law enforcement the tools that they need to protect Arizonans is and should be a bipartisan effort," Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes said at a news conference. "It is a necessary step in the fight against international drug trafficking and critical to our effort to protect all Arizonians."
Mayes' office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
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However, the law is in direct conflict with the Federal Aviation Administration's regulations surrounding drones. Federal law prohibits interfering with a drone while it is in the air, with violators risking criminal and civil penalties.
"Federal law generally prohibits the damage, destruction or disabling of an aircraft," the FAA said in a statement to Fox News Digital. "In addition, anyone shooting at any aircraft – including unmanned aircraft – creates a significant safety hazard. Discharging a weapon at an unmanned aircraft could cause damage to persons or property on the ground or could cause the aircraft to collide with other objects in the air."
CBP did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
"It goes without saying that these cartel actions directly threaten the livelihood of Arizonans," Marshall said. "In 2024 alone, Arizona saw 1,479 opioid-related overdose deaths. That is 1,479 lives taken too soon and countless families changed forever because of these deadly drugs. But when we give law enforcement the tools they need, like House Bill 2733, they are able to capture these drugs before they cause irreparable harm to our communities."