Enhanced Non-Lethal Security Blog

As a CEO, I’m most excited by companies that are using technology to make the world a safer place. And remarkably, I’ve been privileged enough to have been involved in two different companies that have been able to combine security and technology to create a better world.

Digital Ally helped law enforcement departments upgrade their incident recording capabilities. At the time, believe it or not, police cars had big, heavy VCR recorders in their trunks that needed to be wired to the dashboards. Digital Ally pioneered the deployment of the digital dashcam in a way that made it accessible and affordable, leading to widespread adoption. This technology is now used in the majority of police cars today.

There was no better feeling than going to sleep at night knowing that I was part of a company that was developing technology to make America safer.

So, naturally, I couldn’t stop there.

This is in response to Tom Smith's post, Hospital-Based Police, which was a response to The Downside of Hospital-Based Police published in Hospital Dive.

Every healthcare facility faces the question of "how do we best protect our people, patients, guests and institution?" But very few have the option - because of proximity, funding, or type of facility - to rely on local police or their own police force to secure their facility. The main difference between a hospital police officer and a hospital security officer is not who they are, but what they carry and the power to arrest.

It hit me recently while I watched one of our intense instructor certification courses. The moment in front of me had been five years in the making.

Violent incidents at schools have become all too common. As a result, elected officials, law enforcement and school administrators are always looking for an effective, non-lethal solution to keep students and faculty safe.

While the media focus is on high profile incidents such as Columbine, Virginia Tech or Sandy Hook, the sad reality is there are over 1,000 assaults, aggravated assaults, and dangerous incidents that happen on a nearly DAILY basis IN our schools around the country. Local officials and parents know the dangers students face. It’s time we do something to reduce the level of fear, injury and liability in our schools.

As a leader in your community, you are no doubt concerned about public safety. Recently, because of high profile incidents in places like Ferguson, Missouri, and New York City, those chartered to protect the public have come under increased scrutiny.

You’ve no doubt heard the growing calls to outfit police officers with body cameras to record any incident that may occur with the public. But what about security professionals who are not sworn law enforcement officers?