Taser is offering free body cameras to all U.S. police for one year, the stun gun maker announced Wednesday, as well as a company name change to Axon.
The name change, revealed Wednesday, signals a transition from just weapons manufacturing to a more comprehensive law enforcement technology company, according to CNBC.
Along with body cameras, Axon is offering free supporting hardware, software, data storage and training for the first year.
“We believe these cameras are more than just tools to protect communities and the officers who serve them,” Axon CEO Rick Smith said in a news release. “They also hold the potential to change police work as we know it, by seamlessly collecting an impartial record and reducing the need for endless paperwork.”
The program is Axon’s attempt to help smaller police departments navigate what it characterized as growing challenges for law enforcement: “limited resources, lack of staffing, and equipment issues,” the statement said.
“Only 20 percent [of cops] have a camera,” Smith told Ars Technica. “Eighty percent are going out with a gun and no camera. We only need 20 to 30 percent conversion to make it profitable. We expect 80 percent to become customers.”
A recent poll found two-thirds of police favored the use of body cameras, which can provide evidence to support their account when they are accused of wrongdoing by members of the public, Ars Technica reported.
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