As students head back to class, an Austin-based company said its school safety drones are now deployed at campuses in three states to help deter potential school shootings.
Campus Guardian Angel has between 20 and 60 drones in secure docking stations throughout campuses across Florida, Georgia, and Colorado. Officials said they can be deployed in seconds during an emergency. The drones are remotely piloted by a team based in Austin that includes former law enforcement officers, emergency responders, and trained drone pilots.
CEO Justin Marston said the company's goal is to provide an immediate response while law enforcement is en route. The drones are equipped with cameras, lights, sirens, and speakers to communicate with a suspected gunman. Marston said they also can deploy pepper spray and, if necessary, physically strike a suspect to stop the threat.
While the initial rollout is outside Texas, Marston said the company hopes to expand into its home state.
"We'd love to deploy into schools in Texas and keep, you know, kids of, of our own families and friends, and neighbors safe as well.”
He said Campus Guardian Angel has demonstrated its technology at conferences hosted by the Texas School District Police Chiefs Association and the Texas School Safety Center. The company has also held demonstrations for schools across the state.
“School shootings are one of the existential problems that we face as a society, the number of shootings today is 10 times what it was a decade ago,” Marston said. “We spoke to Round Rock High School in Texas, where they had a major event and the teachers ended up having clear trauma and PTSD, even though it was a false alarm.”
Marston said the company is working with a Texas lawmaker and is looking for school districts interested in adopting the technology.
"It's just that Florida and Georgia have legislative sessions every year, and Texas was in a non-cycle year when we started deploying.”
He said the company believes the technology can both improve school safety and reduce anxiety among students, teachers, and staff.
"Our goal and our mission as a company is to protect kids and keep them safe from mass violence in schools, and also to reduce the fear of mass violence in schools," Marston said.
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