Two videos posted to YouTube showing a drone firing a semiautomatic gun, and another a flame thrower, have caught the eye of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
On behalf of the FAA, back in November and December 2015, the U.S. attorney's office issued Austin Haughtwout, 19, and his father, Bret Haughwout, subpoenas seeking depositions and information about the drones.
Both parties refused to comply with the subpoenas on that grounds that they violate constitutional rights to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures, according to CBS News. And now they're headed to court.
"Based on media reports, the FAA believes that the respondents have built and/or operated at least two [drones] carrying weapons with the capability of causing serious injury to a person or property," Assistant U.S. Attorney John Larson wrote in a court filing, according to CBS.
This outreach by the FAA begs the questions if the agency has the authority to regulate recreational drones.
“The FAA will investigate the operation of an unmanned aircraft system in a Connecticut park to determine if any Federal Aviation Regulations were violated," Jim Peters, a spokesperson for the FAA, told NBC News. "The FAA will also work with its law enforcement partners to determine if there were any violations of criminal statutes,”
According to NBC News, the Clinton Police Department was notified of the videos, which have collectively gained more than 4,000,000 views this week, but said they do not believe any laws were violated.
"If it's [the gun attached to the drone] being discharged in an area where it could be legally discharged, right now there's no legislation that prohibits it," Clinton Sgt. Jeremiah Dunn told NBC.
