Gun alerts dispatch if police gun has been fired
A Silicon Valley startup has developed technology to let dispatchers know when a police officer’s weapon has been fired.
The latest product by Yardarm Technologies would notify dispatchers in real time when an officer’s gun is taken out of its holster and when it’s fired. It can also track where the gun is located and in what direction it was fired.
Pretty cool for police. I don’t want it in mine.
October 27th, 2014 at 7:42 pm
Well, if it ever ends up working.
“Back of the gun” (ie, in the grip) and “bluetooth to the officer’s cell phone” sounds pretty unreliable, and I’m likewise dubious about how well it’ll GPS track of how often anyone will bother to recharge the batteries.
October 27th, 2014 at 7:58 pm
Keeping track of where an officer’s gun is sounds like it could be pretty useful, given the stories of police guns getting lost, misplaced, stolen, and even sold.
Of course, the police are public servants. It’s important for We The People to have an eye on them. The same does NOT work the other way around.
October 27th, 2014 at 8:05 pm
I am betting some entrepreneurs could come up with a Detector… Would be cool to be able to “see” the undercover cops in the crowd… I suspect certain people would pay handsomely for such a handy device…
October 27th, 2014 at 9:11 pm
If it’s bluetooth, the phone you have now could detect them.
October 27th, 2014 at 11:22 pm
The way I see it, it looks like a grip plug, which could help with reloads. It could potentially help get backup to a cop who wasn’t able to use their radio, so even if the electronics are unreliable, I don’t see a downside (other than cost).
October 28th, 2014 at 12:30 am
Remember when smart guns were first envisioned as a way to keep criminals from taking guns away from cops and using them against them? And then cops said no because it would cause more problems than it would solve? I can see the same thing happening here. Cops won’t want this for some of the reasons mentioned in other comments, but some politician will decide if sounds like a fantastic thing to force on the peasants.
October 28th, 2014 at 12:57 am
Dispatcher: Everybody at the vicinity of 32st and MLK, officer needs assistance, 27 just un-holstered his wepaon. Code Two, Code Two!
Car 927: 27
Dispatcher: What’s your situation, 27?
Car 927: I was just checking to see if I reloaded after the range session.
Dispatcher: All units. Cancel Code Two; Cancel Code Two.
Dispatcher: Don’t do that again, 27.
October 28th, 2014 at 6:46 am
“Yardarm”? Really?
I’m not predicting widespread enthusiasm for this.
October 28th, 2014 at 9:55 am
“Pretty cool for police. I don’t want it in mine.”
Which means the antis will want it for us while exempting cops.
October 28th, 2014 at 2:51 pm
I’ve got a better idea.
Put a video camera on the cop. Make covering up or disabling the camera a firing offence.
Everyone wins here.
October 28th, 2014 at 4:35 pm
Is there a pool on how long it will take for all units to be called to a firefight that turns out to be at a gun range?
October 28th, 2014 at 6:14 pm
AndyN —
The problem with smart guns was that cops (like everyone else who has a gun for defensive use) don’t want their guns to have a fragile electroic device that falis and leaves their gun in a “No Bang” mode.
If this gadget fails, it doesn’t keep the gun from working. It is analogous to a body camera — other than undercover cops who might be endangered if the gear is detected while in their role, there is no reason for an honest cop to fear it, as it will *verify* his version of events when he is baselessly accused of excessive force.
(And, just like body cameras, it would be difficult to justify forcing civilians to use it on their guns, as that would constitute a “search” based on SCOTUS’s rulings on electronic tracking devices.)
October 29th, 2014 at 5:23 pm
Well sorry gang but you still have to AIM and still have to have TRIGGER CONTROL.
And you still have to be STEADY with the weapon.
October 29th, 2014 at 7:21 pm
Geodkyt –
Unless I’m misreading the linked article, the technology will send out a notification if a weapon is drawn. As Paul Kisling said, it’s not too far-fetched to assume that it won’t take long before some malevolent hacker comes up with a way to track that. If you’re a cop, do you want to assume that the criminal you’re pursuing, who you think is enough of a threat that you had to draw your weapon, isn’t using GPS to tell him where your gun is?
As for honest cops not fearing the police station getting pinged every time they draw, I’d refer you to the recent “A Cop Tried To Kill My Dog Last Night” post. Do you think those cops want to explain to their boss why they thought they needed to pull a gun for a leash law violation? Maybe there are so few cops like them that their opposition to being monitored won’t matter. If this technology gets past the testing phase and they try to sell it to police departments I’ll be curious to hear what police unions have to say about it.