Georgia high schools to test 'less-lethal' drones to confront active shooters

Georgia schools test tactical anti shooter drones

Five Georgia high schools will test a half-million-dollar tactical drone pilot program this fall to confront school shooters with pepper spray, according to state officials.  

ATLANTA - Starting in the fall, five Georgia high schools will have pepper spray-armed drones on standby to fight school shooters. 

As first reported by WABE, beginning next school year, the state will launch a new pilot program testing armed drones designed to confront active shooters, following state legislature approval of the new technology.

The participating schools include Forsyth Central High School in Cumming, River Ridge High School in Woodstock, Gainesville High School, Statesboro High School, and Coffee High School in southwest Georgia, WABE reported.

What we know:

The Georgia State Legislature approved a half-million dollar pilot program with the company Campus Guardian Angel.

If a shooting occurs, the drones launch from boxes located throughout the building and are flown by a human operator in Texas.

The drone is designed to first make noise, then deploy pepper spray, and can ultimately slam into attackers at speed if necessary. 

It can also transmit images of the shooter and be used as a loudspeaker by law enforcement.

"We put about 20 to 60 drones in each school, and we put them in boxes of three throughout the school," Justin Marston, Campus Guardian Angel founder and CEO, said. "Our goals are to respond in five seconds, to be on the shooter in 15 seconds and to degrade or incapacitate in 60 seconds."

The other side:

Critics argue that the technology treats educational spaces like war zones and ignores simpler solutions.

Ladeija Kimbrough, a recent college graduate and volunteer with the gun control advocacy group Everytown for Gun Safety, noted that state lawmakers declined to take up simpler measures that would keep firearms away from dangerous individuals.

"I don't think there's any room for treating schools as a war zone," Ladeija Kimbrough, Everytown for Gun Safety volunteer, said. "There's no proven fact or no proven evidence that this is going to help. We're skipping over more practical, inexpensive steps that have been proven to help in other states."

She pointed to measures stronger background checks and gun storage requirements. 

What they're saying:

Supporters of the technology emphasize its necessity during a crisis.

"We're only going when there's an immediate danger to your child's life," Justin Marston, Campus Guardian Angel founder and CEO, said. "And in that moment, you will take anything to try and save their life."

Martson said he hopes the technology never has to be used, but it's there as a safeguard. 

"Ultimately, if somebody is covered in pepper spray but still wants to kill children, then we will hit them with the drones at speed to prevent them from doing that," he said.

What's next:

The drone pilot program is scheduled to run in the five selected high schools through the end of the next school year.

Following the conclusion of the test period, the Georgia State Legislature will determine whether to expand the drone program to more schools across the state.