Several schools in Colorado, Florida and Georgia are set to begin the academic year with a new security measure: drones equipped with pepper spray, strobe lights and sirens designed to respond to active shooter incidents within seconds.
The systems, developed by Mithril Defence, will be deployed for the first time in these states as part of efforts to enhance school safety. The company has been testing whether the drones can work alongside law enforcement to stop attackers more quickly than traditional police response alone, as per CBS News.
According to CEO Justin Marston, the drones can travel through school hallways at speeds of up to 50 miles per hour and are remotely operated by pilots based at the company’s headquarters in Austin, Texas. The goal is to locate an active shooter within 15 seconds. The devices are designed to disorient a suspect using sirens, flashing lights and pepper gel, and, as a last resort, can ram a target at speeds of up to 60 miles per hour.
The drones are stored in secure boxes inside schools and can be deployed within seconds — a critical factor, Marston said, as most school shootings end within two to three minutes. He added that the drones can enter rooms ahead of police officers, citing data indicating officers are shot in about half of mass shootings.
“An officer should never have to risk their life doing something that a drone can do, because we don't care if the drone gets shot. It's a lump of plastic,” Marston said. “We just jump in with the next one. But an officer's life is irreplaceable.”
The rollout reflects a broader trend in school security spending. U.S. schools spend about $4 billion annually on measures such as metal detectors and surveillance systems, according to the Learning Policy Institute. School shootings peaked at 352 incidents in 2023, according to the K-12 School Shooting Database, compared with fewer than 30 annually in the 1970s and 1980s.
Some experts argue that focusing on root causes is more effective. Jennifer DePaoli of the Learning Policy Institute said research shows safety depends not only on physical protections but also on students’ psychological well-being, emphasising mental health support and positive school environments.
Marston agreed that prevention matters but said response systems are also necessary. “We should teach kids that they shouldn't start fires ... but I wouldn't send my kids to a school that didn't have a sprinkler system,” he said. “They aren't mutually exclusive.”
The program costs about $20,000 annually for a typical school and is being state-funded in Georgia and Florida. In Colorado, a pilot at John Adams Academy relies on private funding after public support was withdrawn amid parental concerns over safety and legal risks. Louisiana is also considering a similar pilot program.
By Tamilla Hasanova
