City Council votes to accept donation of controversial LAPD robot dog

Amid lingering concerns about surveillance and safety, the Los Angeles City Council voted Tuesday to accept the donation of a nearly $280,000 dog-like robot for the Police Department’s use.

The 8-4 vote followed more than a dozen public comments urging council members to vote against the controversial device, which would be paid for with a donation from the Los Angeles Police Foundation.

Council members also approved a plan to have the Los Angeles Police Department provide quarterly reports on deployment of the device, including where and why it was deployed, the outcome and any issues.

“This item is being painted as merely an acceptance of a donation, but it really represents an expansion of the current boundaries around policing and surveillance,” Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martínez said before voting no. “This is not the vision of the community that I believe Los Angeles should be.”

Although the vote was a majority in favor, none of the council members Tuesday explained why they endorsed the move. Councilmember Traci Park, who voted for the device, previously dismissed the suggestion that the robot would put the department “on a path towards a dystopian, Orwellian future of state surveillance.”

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