Case Closed, Stephenville Texas sheriffs department receives drone, search and rescue software and lighting from our partner supporters.

WHERE: Erath County, Texas

WHEN: 1/20/2021

Their Request

The Erath County Sheriff’s Office is asking for assistance in obtaining a drone for law enforcement use. The Sheriff’s Office is responsible for over 1000 square miles with landscape ranging from open farm land to heavy wooded and rocky terrain. The Sheriff’s Office is a relatively small agency and a drone would benefit this department greatly. The drone will be used for search and rescue, high risk SWAT operations, Crime Scene, and in solving other criminal activities.

“Eyes in the sky for every department in need"

Their Story

Upon receiving this donation, the Erath County Sheriff’s Office used the Evo system three times in the first 30 days. These calls included a barricaded suicidal subject, a search and rescue call that became a forensic scene and on a hostage/barricaded person call. It has been used to document scenes, de-escalate situations and provide officers with critical information of dangers when it is sent out prior to officers. On one of the calls, the suspect had a gun aimed at whoever would be rounding the corner. Thankfully, the drone went ahead of the officers surprising the suspect who then put the gun down and surrendered peacefully.
This UAS has saved officer’s lives on two occasions and has exceeded our expectations. It has seemingly unlimited uses and has helped us better protect our community,” said Sgt. David Southerland of the Erath County Sheriff’s Office.
Upon learning that FoxFury would be making this donation, the NPS_DDP reached out to other partners. Loc8 stepped up and agreed to donate their powerful image scanning software, which helps search for people and objects quickly and effectively.
Loc8 is proud to partner with NPS-DDP to support public safety officers in saving lives and bringing closure. We feel our technology will be a great asset to Erath County Sheriff’s Office in search and rescue operations, crime scene analysis and debris field mapping,” Anthony Lockly, CEO of Loc8.
This donation was made by NPS-DDP partners including FoxFury Lighting Solutions, Loc8 and the Life In The Arena Foundation. This was the 24th UAS donated by NPS-DDP whose focus is on smaller public safety agencies who are looking to start drone programs but may not have the budget to get a drone program started
” Our mission is to help put eyes in the sky for every department in need. We are thankful to the Partner Supporters who make this program possible and to the public safety departments who tell us their story to help raise awareness and education for the benefits of UAS technology,” said Marc Langley, Founder of NPS-DDP.