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Police Helicopter Usage


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On hold.

 

Police helicopters are a powerful asset for real world agencies and the ones that we portray on the server alike. Our roleplay environment is based around Los Angeles which is home to a department that has its helicopters in the sky for upward of twenty (20) hours a day, and because of that we have no interest in removing the ability for Law Enforcement air units to be proactive within the in-character environment. It is a consideration that any criminal should have in the environment we portray. That being said, we understand the scale differences between real life and the game. Los Angeles has a population of nearly four million, as opposed to the hundreds that actively play on the server, and the area of operation is significantly smaller compared to the real deal. With these considerations in mind the Legal Faction Management team have drafted up the following restrictions to allow Police helicopters to still have a proactive purpose without having it impede on players who choose to roleplay crimes to an unfair degree:

  • Air units shall not turf camp. Defined as hovering above, or circling, one area of the map for an extended period of time. An extended period of time in this context shall be defined as any length of time excessively longer than two (2) minutes and shall not return for at least five (5) minutes. Justifiable exceptions include, but are not strictly limited to:
    • The Air unit has witnessed a crime, or serious injury, occurring within the defined timeframe.
    • Response to an emergency call in the area (911 call, backup call, etc.)
    • An individual or vehicle that reasonably matches the description of a crime broadcast, or APB has been spotted in the area.
    • A vehicle that reasonably matches the description of one reported stolen has been spotted in the area.
    • A pursuit suspect has been lost and the Air unit is attempting to locate within the last known area.
    • Tactical operations, search and rescue, backup calls, or warrant executions that require the usage of helicopter surveillance/oversight.
    • Civil unrest such as protests and riots.
    • Purposes of crime suppression during Tac Alerts if a specific area has been highlighted as a problematic area for the duration of the alert.
  • Air units are expected to fully roleplay out a defined pre-flight checklist prior to take off. This will be standardised by LFM across all relevant factions. These expectations will be distributed to factions a short period after these rules go into effect.
  • Air units shall spend at least five (5) minutes touched down when refuelling.
  • Air units may still perform their general sky patrol duties. The purpose of this rule is not to demote Air units to just being pursuit response tools, they can still be proactive, however, to follow individuals/vehicles the unit must have a justifiable reason to do so:
    • The individual or any vehicle occupant has been witnessed to have committed a crime (Including charges like Reckless Driving).
    • A vehicle reasonably matches the description of a stolen vehicle.
    • A vehicle/individual reasonably matches the description of a crime broadcast, APB, or an emergency call.
  • Air units shall not roleplay hearing gunshots from below.

 

These rules have not yet been tested in a live environment, and that being said they are subject to change based on feedback from the community, legal or illegal. It is difficult to make an all-encompassing rule for such a versatile tool, so it is expected that community members act in good faith toward the spirit of these rules. The two (2) minute rule is subject to additional considerations from administrators, as we do not expect pilots to have a timer running to determine how long they've been in an area, but rather take that time limit as a general privision as not to overstay their welcome.

 

Due to the nature of incidents involving helicopters, it may not always be possible to identify who was responsible. Reports related to breaches of this rule should be directed to @Storm and @Moe in a private message with the following format:
 

Character Name: 
Reported Party (if known): 
Date and Time of incident: 
Witnesses (inc. people from the department): 
Was an arrest made (Y/N): 
Narrative: 
Evidence: 
Edited by Storm
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Just now, Vash Baldeus said:

Won't it be wise to have logs which LEO took the helicopter and when? Would make it a tad easier to identify the units, especially since there is not 50 units in the air at once.

We already have all this stuff logged, so this should not be an issue!

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9 minutes ago, Storm said:

 

  • Air units may still perform their general sky patrol duties. The purpose of this rule is not to demote Air units to just being pursuit response tools, they can still be proactive, however, to follow individuals/vehicles the unit must have a justifiable reason to do so:
    • The individual or any vehicle occupant has been witnessed to have committed a crime (Including charges like Reckless Driving).
    • A vehicle reasonably matches the description of a stolen vehicle.
    • A vehicle/individual reasonably matches the description of a crime broadcast, APB, or an emergency call.

This is really the only section I have an issue with personally. There are many more justifiable reasons than already committed a crime... The whole purpose of law enforcement is to be proactive not reactive. If I see a vehicle driving around four deep in masks and gloved, the way this is written right now tells me I have to fly away or else the whole situation gets voided.

 

There is no reasonable expectation of privacy when driving/walking around in the city. It is simply just not an invasion of privacy for a helicopter to surveil things happening on the ground, legal or not. Yes,  I agree turf camping is where the line should be drawn, though I'm not sure the time limit strategy is the way to go. That said, I have no better suggestion so I will see how it works.

 

Overall, I can get on board with these changes, but the section quoted above needs major revamping in my opinion.

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4 minutes ago, Coach said:

If I see a vehicle driving around four deep in masks and gloved, the way this is written right now tells me I have to fly away

 

Is it really realistic to be zooming in close enough to see that on random vehicles though?

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Big step forwards to help the illegal scene. 
 

LEO air units are extremely OP and as a member of an official faction, I’ve seen first hand how they can spend 20-30 minutes hovering over a location which just sets everything back for the illegal scene. 

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