Boston a no-drone zone

The Boston Marathon’s security team has banned drones along the route of the upcoming race.

The Massachusetts authorities confirmed what many had suspected Monday in a press conference about security measures for the route: the only notable change from 2014 will be the banning of unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, which have continued to increase in popularity since a year ago.

The press conference held on security for the race also noted there will be 3,500 uniformed officers stationed along the 42.4K race course from Hopkinton to downtown Boston as well as additional plainclothes officers. Most of the security checkpoints from 2014 will remain in place and the estimated million spectators have also been asked not to bring bags.

In general, the message was that security will be as tight as 2014.

In 2014 security at the race saw a major overhaul from 2o13, a year when two pressure cooker bombs were detonated at the finish line. Last Wednesday Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was found guilty of 30 crimes in relation to the bombing and subsequent manhunt which followed.

The sentencing will be a topic at the forefront of this year’s race, the second phase of the trial beginning the day after the race. One week before the run, the judge told jurors not to attend the race or anything which might be considered prejudicial, something which will be difficult in and around the city.