Stanford Law Professor David Sklansky concurred that the military equipment category “can be hard to define.”

He said that equipment that “seems inarguably military,” like certain kinds of arms, can still be appropriate for police department use. On the other hand, he argued that some less obviously “military” equipment may also be in the hands of public safety officers. And that could be a cause for concern.

“Drones are a perfect example of this,” Sklansky said. “Even drones that don’t seem military raise concerns about privacy. And communities may have concerns about the police using them.”