Few regulations prohibit flying recreational drones

Question: About 8:45 a.m. one day, my neighbor began flying his drone over houses and in the park near my house. This continued through our breakfast with a sound that mimics a hundred mosquitos. About 11 a.m., I went into my backyard and found the drone flying above me. I don’t know if it has a camera, but it stayed in that position a long time and made me feel very uncomfortable. People are entitled to their fun. However, don’t I have some expectation of privacy in my home and backyard without a drone maybe peering at me? Not to mention the noise. Are there any police or government rules for the use of these drones?

Answer: For now, if your neighbor’s drone (aka "unmanned aerial vehicle" or "unmanned aircraft system") is flying below 400 feet, is away from airports and not interfering with manned aircraft, is not flying over Aloha Stadium during a UH football game, is flown in sight of the operator and operated only for recreational purposes, there is nothing preventing your neighbor from buzzing the neighborhood.

These are the rules and regulations set by the Federal Aviation Administration.

A bill proposing to prohibit the use of "unmanned aircraft," except by law enforcement agencies conducting surveillance, did not make it out of the state Legislature this year. There currently is no state or county law restricting the flight of such drones.

The FAA has had rules for model aircraft operators under its Modernization and Reform Act of 2012.

But in June it published its interpretation of the statutory special rules, saying it wanted "to provide clear guidance to model operators on the ‘do’s and don’ts’ of flying safely" in response to recent incidents involving "the reckless use" of unmanned model aircraft near airports and involving large crowds of people.

If a model aircraft is flown within five miles of an airport, the airport and air traffic control tower have to be notified.

Drones with cameras seen swooping over dozens of packed football stadiums across the country have heightened concerns about safety, not only about what the drones might be carrying, but about the dangers of them flying in crowded areas.

The FAA recently updated its rules to prohibit recreational drones/model aircraft from flying within 3 nautical miles or below 3,000 feet above any stadium with a seating capacity of 30,000 or more when a major league baseball, national league football or NCAA Division 1 football game is occurring.

The FAA says it may pursue enforcement action against model aircraft operators who endanger the safety of the national airspace system, including endangering people or property on the ground.

You can contact the FAA regarding safety concerns with unmanned aircraft systems by going to the Aviation Safety Hotline website or by calling 866-835-5322, option 4.

For more information, see faa.gov/uas/publications/model_aircraft_operators.

Question: Regarding the Nov. 7 Kokua Line column about DNA sampling required of convicted felons in Hawaii (bit.ly/1yA7fOx): What if the former felon no longer lives in Hawaii? How does the state keep up with former felons’ whereabouts? What if the felon is deceased? What about felons who have been found to be wrongly convicted after they’ve been in prison?

Answer: If a convicted felon has moved out of state, the state attorney general’s DNA Collection Unit will try to contact the felon’s family in Hawaii and will continue to conduct periodic checks, said Lance Goto, a deputy attorney general in the Criminal Justice Division.

It will continue to conduct periodic checks for the felon.

When the unit learns that a felon is deceased, it will contact the Hawaii Criminal Justice Data Center to update its database, he said.

As for a conviction being set aside, "then the defendant would not be a convicted felon, and would not be required to provide a DNA sample," Goto said.

Write to “Kokua Line” at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu 96813; call 529-4773; fax 529-4750; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.