Another Texas Police Department Implements Viridian® Gun Cameras

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – March 10, 2020 – The Decatur, Texas Police Department has deployed the FACT Duty™Weapon-Mounted Camera (WMC™) in the field. Police Chief Rex Hoskins, Captain Delvon Campbell and officials from Minnesota-based Viridian Weapon Technologies will give a short news conference on the impact of the new technology. The news conference will take place Thursday, March 12 at 10:00 AM at the Decatur Conference Center (Great Hall) located at 1910 West US HWY 380, Decatur, Texas 76234. 

Decatur’s announcement comes on the heels of a high-profile trial in Vernon, Texas just last month. For the first time, footage from Viridian’s gun camera was used in an officer-involved shooting (OIS) trial, and a jury quickly convicted the defendant of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon on a public official. The WMC provided the critical evidence in the case by showing the defendant pointing a sawed-off shotgun at Vernon Police Corporal T.J. Session during an exchange of gunfire in which both Corporal Session and the defendant were shot and wounded. 

“The Weapon-Mounted Cameras now in use by our department better prepare them for the dangers and realities facing police officers today,” said Decatur Police Chief Rex Hoskins. “The FACT Duty provides a perspective different from any other cameras available today. We saw this when we first learned of the cameras, and last month’s trial in Wilbarger County was very compelling reinforcement on why we want it for our officers.” 

Viridian has created an important category for law enforcement with the introduction of the Weapon-Mounted Camera. This distinctive camera provides an unobstructed view of critical use-of-force events from the end of the firearm, addressing limitations officers can face with body cameras. 

“The decision by Chief Hoskins and other law enforcement agencies across the country further demonstrates the need for our FACT Duty gun camera,” Viridian President and CEO, Brian Hedeen, said.  “Our technology can be a supplement or alternative to body cameras as a mandatory evidentiary tool to provide the critical evidence of a subject’s actions at the time a police officer is forced to make the split-second decision to pull the trigger.”

The highly advanced WMC employs a 1080p full-HD digital camera with a microphone and 500 lumen tactical light. Viridian’s proprietary INSTANT-ON® technology automatically activates the camera and microphone whenever the officer draws the firearm from its holster. Not only does this eliminate risk of failure to manually turn on the camera during a critical event, but it also keeps the officer from fumbling with cumbersome equipment. 

More information, including sample video and access to Decatur and Viridian personnel for comment, is available before or after the news conference by contacting Tim Brandt at tim.brandt@murrayroadagency.com or calling 763-291-9044.

About Viridian Weapon Technologies 

Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Viridian Weapon Technologies is devoted to applying cutting-edge technology to design compact, powerful self-defense products for the civilian, military and law enforcement markets. Viridian is the leader in weapon-mounted technology and responsible for a number of firearm innovations including green and red laser sights, LED weapon-mounted illuminators and several shooting accessories including the TacLoc® Holsters. Viridian products are designed and built in the USA. More information is available at ViridianWeaponTech.com.

Viridian® Awarded National Public Safety Video Surveillance Contract

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – February 24, 2020 – Viridian Weapon Technologies is pleased to announce that it has been awarded the Sourcewell contract in the Public Safety Video Surveillance Solutions category. As one of the top-scoring respondents during a recent competitive solicitation process, Viridian earned a four-year contract. Sourcewell awarded this contract to only four respondents after reviewing RFP responses from 23 manufacturers. Viridian received the award along with Axon Enterprise, Inc., Panasonic i-PRO Sensing Solutions Corporation of America, and WatchGuard Video, Inc. (recently acquired by Motorola Solutions).

Sourcewell, formerly NJPA, is a leading government agency specializing in cooperative purchasing. Their procurement experts have awarded more than 325 competitively solicited contracts to world-class companies on behalf of their 50,000 public-agency members.

“Good news continues to happen for our company. This bid award further emphasizes the essential role that Weapon Mounted Cameras (WMCs) play in mobile video evidence solutions,” said Brian Hedeen, President and CEO at Viridian. “It increases public awareness of what we have known for a long time – that WMCs are the ideal tool to capture officer-involved shootings.”

“We believe the award of this bid to Viridian provides great value to Sourcewell member municipalities and police departments,” said Viridian General Counsel, Matthew Plowman. “The inclusion of Viridian in the bid award alongside three prominent video evidence companies demonstrates that the agency recognizes the value of WMCs as a supplement or alternative to traditional bodycams as part of a community’s risk management for the critical exposure of high level use-of-force events. 

Through Viridian’s Sourcewell contract, government agencies may purchase Viridian’s advanced and revolutionary Weapon Mounted Cameras at its most competitive pricing available, without the burden of the typical RFP process.

Viridian’s FACT Duty™ WMC has already proven indispensable in the courtroom. Earlier this month, evidence from a Viridian WMC was presented in an officer-involved shooting (OIS) trial. The jury in Vernon, Texas, after seeing WMC footage of the incident, took less than 30 minutes to convict the defendant of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon on a public official. 

Viridian’s FACT Duty Weapon-Mounted Camera provides an unobstructed view of critical use-of-force events from the end of the firearm, addressing limitations officers can face with body cameras. The WMC employs a 1080p full-HD digital camera with a microphone and 500 lumen tactical light. Viridian’s proprietary INSTANT-ON® technology automatically activates the camera and microphone whenever the officer draws the firearm from its holster. Not only does this eliminate risk of failure to manually turn on the camera during a critical event, but it also keeps the officer from fumbling with cumbersome equipment. 

More information on FACT Duty WMCs can be found at ViridianWeaponTech.com/FACT-Duty-Learn-More. 

About Viridian Weapon Technologies 

Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Viridian Weapon Technologies is devoted to applying cutting-edge technology to design compact, powerful self-defense products for the civilian, military and law enforcement markets. Viridian is the leader in weapon-mounted technology and responsible for a number of firearm innovations including green and red laser sights, LED weapon-mounted illuminators and several shooting accessories including the TacLoc® Holsters. Viridian products are designed and built in the USA. More information is available at ViridianWeaponTech.com.

Viridian® Gun Cam Vital Evidence in Conviction for Assault on Texas Officer

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – February 18, 2020 – A day after evidence from the FACT Duty™ Weapon-Mounted Camera (WMC™) was presented for the first time in an officer-involved shooting (OIS) trial, a jury in Vernon, Texas convicted the defendant of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon on a public official, a level one felony in Texas. The defendant was sentenced by the Wilbarger County jury to 40 years in prison. The WMC provided the critical evidence in the case by showing the defendant pointing a sawed-off shotgun at Vernon Police Corporal T.J. Session during an exchange of gunfire in which both Corporal Session and the defendant were shot and wounded. The WMC evidence helped eliminate any reasonable doubt on the defendant’s actions as the jury took less than 30 minutes to arrive at the guilty verdict.  

The defense claimed self-defense in the case based on allegations of the officer using unlawful force in the situation, but Viridian General Counsel, Matthew Plowman, who attended the trial, explained that the evidence provided by the WMC refuted that defense. “The WMC provided essential footage of this particular incident. It was the first OIS event involving our WMC technology and it worked exactly as intended to provide clarity to the event,” Plowman said. “This case would have been much more difficult to prosecute without the WMC footage.”

“It was really an absolutely critical piece of evidence in this case,” said Wilbarger County District Attorney, Staley Heatly, who prosecuted the case. “[The gun camera] allows us to have an unfettered view or the best view you possibly can without looking through the eyes of the officer.”

Viridian President and CEO, Brian Hedeen, said, “We want to again solute the brave officers involved in this incident and the Vernon Police Department for having the foresight to protect its officers and the community with WMCs to capture the most critical events in the most critical type of incident a community can face. It was rewarding to know that justice was being served with the contribution of our WMC technology.”

“We expect that when police departments and legal officials from around the country learn of this result, most will see the necessity of the WMC as a supplement or alternative to body cameras as a mandatory evidentiary tool to provide the critical evidence of a subject’s actions at the time a police officer is forced to make the split-second decision to pull the trigger,” added Plowman.

More information on FACT Duty WMCs can be found at ViridianWeaponTech.com/FACT-Duty-Learn-More. 

About Viridian Weapon Technologies 

Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Viridian Weapon Technologies is devoted to applying cutting-edge technology to design compact, powerful self-defense products for the civilian, military and law enforcement markets. Viridian is the leader in weapon-mounted technology and responsible for a number of firearm innovations including green and red laser sights, LED weapon-mounted illuminators and several shooting accessories including the TacLoc® Holsters. Viridian products are designed and built in the USA. More information is available at ViridianWeaponTech.com.