JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Florida lawmakers have approved another $564,500 for a school safety drone program that its backers say could change how active shooter incidents are handled, bringing the state’s investment to more than $1.1 million over two years.
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The funding, included in Florida’s new 2026-27 budget, adds to $557,000 approved last year for the Campus Guardian Angel program. The Department of Education has not said whether the new money will expand the program to additional districts or strengthen its presence in the counties already using it.
At a demonstration in downtown Jacksonville for the Florida Association of School Resource Officers, Campus Guardian Angel CEO Justin Marston showed how the system would work. Drones, he said, are intended to respond quickly to distract, confront and incapacitate an active shooter.
“So our goals are to respond in five seconds, to be on the shooter in 15 seconds, and to degrade or incapacitate in 60 seconds,” Marston said, adding that “most shootings are over in 120 seconds.”
Pilots were on site for the demonstration, but Marston said the drones are typically flown remotely, sometimes from hundreds of miles away. He described the team as composed of former Navy SEALs, SWAT operators, 911 response personnel and top drone racing pilots.
The aircraft do not carry firearms. They are equipped with flashing lights, live cameras, a speaker and a nonlethal pepper spray device. News4JAX video of the demonstration showed a drone striking a dummy during a simulated response.
The program has been deployed in schools in Brevard, Leon and Volusia counties. Each school is outfitted with 30 to 60 drones depending on building size; the drones are housed in ceilings and would be deployed during an emergency, the company said.
Marston said Campus Guardian Angel is working with the University of Florida on an independent study to measure how much faster drones can reach a shooter compared with traditional officers. He also said pilots are on staff during school hours now but the company is working toward providing 24-hour protection because many pilots also secure other buildings.
Supporters point to extensive testing in simulated scenarios. Critics have noted the technology has not yet been tested in a real active shooter incident, and the true effectiveness of such systems in live situations remains unproven.
The Florida Department of Education did not immediately respond to a request for comment on which districts, if any, will receive the second round of funding. News4JAX first reported on the program last November.