A company in Austin, Texas claims to have found a new solution to school shooters: drones. Mithril Defense is currently designing pepper-spraying drones – inspired by the Ukrainian military’s successful drone program – that the company claims can respond to an active shooter within seconds. But while some are lauding the idea, others feel that putting this technology into schools might bring more problems than solutions.
The drone program developed by Mithril, called Campus Guardian Angel, provides an “elite, on-site safety response capability that works alongside school safety teams, confronting any active shooter threat”, according to the company’s website. The drones are flown remotely and can reportedly arrive at a shooter’s location in 15 seconds. They are currently being provided to schools in Colorado, Florida and Georgia.
But many people fear that this concept may not be as effective as tech enthusiasts hope – and could cause additional safety issues. The drones “might accidentally target a fleeing student instead of a shooter” or “remote pilots, in a split-second decision, might mistake a law enforcement officer for a shooter, especially if teachers initiate a false alarm”, Curtis Lavarello, head of the School Safety Advocacy Council, told The Washington Post.
The approach also “seems to reflect that part of America which says the way to address recurrent school shootings” is “not with stricter gun control laws”, said Moisés Ávila at Barron’s, but “rather with weaponry, such as giving teachers guns”. |
