Michael Smolens: Drones will be everywhere. Public protections should be, too.

Michael Smolens: Drones will be everywhere. Public protections should be, too.

Law enforcement and commercial use of drones is expanding rapidly, and the pace is about to pick up. So is the fight over public access to the information they gather — on video and through other means — along with what safeguards should be in place to protect privacy rights. The Trump administration last week proposed new rules to make it easier for companies to use drones over longer distances — out of the operator’s sight — without having to …