Skip to main content

Drone-hunting licenses shot down in Colorado town after protest

civilian drone
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Put down your shotgun, folks. There won’t be any drone-hunting happening until next spring or later – at least if you’re in the small town of Deer Trail, Colorado, where one man’s mission to make it legal to shoot down quadrocopters and other unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) has been delayed until April 2014.

Deer Trail local Phillip Steel launched an effort earlier this year to create official “drone-hunting licenses” that would allow purchasers to blow away UAVs that infiltrate the airspace above Deer Trail, and even collect bounties for handing over decimated drone parts.

Recommended Videos

Unfortunately for Steel, a recent Deer Trail Board of Trustees vote (captured by the Colbert Report for a November segment) ended in a tie, sending the vote to the community’s 523 residents, reports the Daily Beast. The vote was set to take place today, December 10; however, Deer Trail resident Jessica Stoumbaugh protested the vote, forcing a judge to delay any action on Steel’s drone-hunting ordinance until next year.

Phillip Steel
Phillip Steel Image used with permission by copyright holder

The problem with drones, writes Steel on his Drone Shooters website, is that they will give the U.S. government the power to “control all.”

“Forget about States’ Rights. Do you like to shoot? Hunt? Play softball?” asks Steel. “Do you want to build a house or barn? The federal government will control all. Our federal overseers will rule us and tax all. We will serve a ruling elite who has already exempted themselves from any laws that they may pass.”

Steel’s hatred of drones is fueled by the Federal Aviation Administration’s forthcoming rules to allow commercial drones into U.S. airspace in larger numbers – as many as 15,000 or so within the next five to 10 years, according to FAA estimates. When Amazon announced its plans to introduce a delivery service that uses drones, called Prime Air, Steel’s drone-killing efforts struck a chord with Web users who were appalled at the idea of swarms of flying robots taking over the skies.

While Deer Trail has yet to approve any form of drone-hunting licenses, Steel won’t be stopped by technicalities like votes and laws. Instead, he has begun selling drone-hunting licenses himself, through his website, for $25 a pop – and people have actually bought them. Say what you will about Phillip Steel – we think he may be an evil genius.

Andrew Couts
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Features Editor for Digital Trends, Andrew Couts covers a wide swath of consumer technology topics, with particular focus on…
Trade group says EV tax incentive helps U.S. industry compete versus China
ev group support tax incentive 201 seer credit eligibility

The Zero Emission Transportation Association (ZETA), a trade group with members including the likes of Tesla, Waymo, Rivian, and Uber, is coming out in support of tax incentives for both the production and sale of electric vehicles (EVs).

Domestic manufacturers of EVs and their components, such as batteries, have received tax incentives that have driven job opportunities in states like Ohio, Kentucky, Michigan, and Georgia, the group says.

Read more
Ford boosts year-end discounts on 2024 Lightning, Mach-E Models
ford discounts lightning mach e 24 frd mch 51368 ao3a1676 edit 14a676

We’re officially into the traditional year-end sales period for automakers. That means big discounts are on the way, as both manufacturers and dealerships want to get rid of unsold inventory to make room for next year’s models.

This season, Ford has decided to boost incentives on its bestselling electric vehicles, the 2024 F-150 Lightning and Mustang Mach-E models.

Read more
Eaton, Treehouse to boost home capacity for EV charging, energy storage
eaton treehouse ev charging news releases

Power-management firm Eaton likes to point out that when it launched in 1911, it invested in a new idea -- the very first gear-driven truck axle -- just at a time when both transportation and power management were on the cusp of dramatic change.
More than 113 years later, Eaton is again seeking to lead innovation in the current energy transition.
The power-management firm just signed a deal with Treehouse, an AI, software-enabled installation platform for electrification projects. The end goal: accelerating the electrification of homes for electric-vehicle (EV) charging, energy storage, or heat pumps, while seeking more efficiency and cost savings.
“At Eaton, we’re all-in on the energy transition and we’re making it happen at scale by delivering breakout technologies and industry collaborations needed to delight customers and make it more accessible and affordable,” says Paul Ryan, general manager of Connected Solutions and EV Charging at Eaton.
The partnership will ensure consumers are provided with accurate and fast pricing, as well as access to licensed electricians to deliver code-compliant installations, the companies say.
The collaboration also integrates into Eaton’s “Home as a Grid” approach, which supports the two-way flow of electricity, enabling homeowners to produce and consume renewable energy when they need it, Eaton says.
“For more than a century, power has flowed in one direction—from centralized power plants into homes,” the company says. “Today, there’s a new reality thanks to solar, electric-vehicle charging, energy storage, digitalization, and more.”
Projects to change homes and EVs into energy hubs have multiplied recently.
Last month, Nissan joined ChargeScape, a vehicle-to-grid (V2G) venture that is already backed by BMW, Ford, and Honda. ChargeScape’s software wirelessly connects EVs to power grids and utility companies, enabling consumers to receive financial incentives for temporarily pausing charging during periods of high demand. Eventually, consumers should also be able to sell the energy stored in their EVs’ battery back to the power grid.
In August, GM announced that V2G technology will become standard in all its model year 2026 models. And Tesla CEO Elon Musk has hinted that Tesla could introduce V2G technology for its vehicles in 2025.

Read more