Taser Gets Big Body-Camera Order

Taser International Inc. on Tuesday said it won a contract from the London Metropolitan Police to outfit officers with body cameras, sending shares up sharply in early trading.

The Seattle-based company said the order for 22,000 Axon cameras came after London police completed a pilot program earlier this year using 1,000 of the cameras. Taser said the trial was the largest to date of body cameras, and, according to the company, the College of Policing found that introducing the cameras resulted in a 33% reduction in complaints against officers.

"We're driving a global trend toward smarter, more transparent policing," the company's founder and chief executive, Rick Smith said, adding that Taser's Axon platform has become the most widely-used body camera and digital evidence-management system in law enforcement.

Demand for Taser's products and services has skyrocketed amid increasing and racially-charged friction between some areas' law-enforcement officials and the citizens they police. Since the high-profile shooting death of black teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., by officer Darren Wilson, which stoked calls for more body cameras, Taser's stock has gained 56%, including the 7% gain notched Tuesday morning.

Taser said the terms of the deal aren't yet completed. The company said it expects to release additional information on the contract in February.

Write to Lisa Beilfuss at [e-mail]

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November 24, 2015 10:35 ET (15:35 GMT)

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