Police have backtracked on a controversial proposal that would allow the use of 'killer robots' to deliver explosives.
This comes after the plan's approval was met by fierce pushback, leading officials to reconsider.
San Francisco Police Department supervisors voted on Tuesday to explicitly ban the use of robots to kill suspects but have sent the issue back to a committee for further discussion.
Last week the board voted to allow the use of deadly robots in extreme circumstances.
The police department said it had no plans to arm the robots with guns but wanted the ability to put explosives on them and use them against armed suspects when lives are at risk.
The proposal was met by a big backlash with many saying arming robots was like something out of a dystopian science fiction movie.
Robots are currently used widely by police forces for defusing bombs and reconnaissance but they are rarely used it to confront or kill suspects.
Three supervisors who rejected the policy from the beginning joined dozens of protesters Monday outside City Hall to urge the board to change course. They chanted and held signs with phrases like “We all saw that movie... No Killer Robots.”
Supervisor Dean Preston was among them, and on Tuesday he told his colleagues the public hadn’t been given enough time to voice their concerns about such a pressing issue.
“The people of San Francisco have spoken loud and clear: There is no place for killer police robots in our city,” he said in a statement after the vote. “We should be working on ways to decrease the use of force by local law enforcement, not giving them new tools to kill people.”
Police in the US have used robots to kill before. In 2016, Dallas police sent in an armed robot that killed a holed-up sniper who had killed five officers in an ambush.
Supervisor Connie Chan, a member of the committee that brought the proposal to the full board, said she understood concerns over use of force but that “according to state law, we are required to approve the use of these equipments. So here we are, and it’s definitely not an easy discussion”.
The authorisation was needed after a new California law came into effect this year requiring police and sheriffs departments to inventory all military-grade equipment and get approval for their use.
For a long time, grenade launchers, camouflage uniforms, bayonets, armoured vehicles and other surplus military equipment have been issued from a federal level to help local law enforcement.
So far, only San Francisco and Oakland have discussed lethal robots as part of that law. Oakland police wanted to arm robots with shotguns but backed down in the face of public opposition, instead opting for pepper spray.
The current rules still allow police to use robots to check out potentially dangerous scenes so that officers can stay back.
“Having robots that have eyes and ears and can remove bombs, which happens from time to time, is something that we want the police department to do while we continue to have this very controversial discussion,” said Supervisor Aaron Peskin, who brought forward last week’s motion around the use of robots.
The new policy needs another vote to take effect.
