Byrna Technologies Announces New Law Enforcement Business Unit
Launches International Sales to Law Enforcement
ANDOVER, Mass., Sept. 15, 2020 /CNW/ -- Byrna Technologies Inc. (OTCQB: BYRN) (CSE: BYRN) ("Byrna" or "the Company") today announced the formation of a new global business unit that will focus on domestic and international law enforcement agencies and private security companies. This new division, "Byrna LE" will introduce the Company's Byrna line of less-lethal weapons to domestic and international law enforcement agencies as well as to global private security companies and other professionally licensed entities. With the recent deaths of unarmed civilians and the resulting civil unrest, there is strong community support across the United States for government entities to more broadly adopt the use of less-lethal weapon systems and tactics.
Byrna has developed a comprehensive multi-day training program for law enforcement officers including a focused "Train the Trainer" (T3) program. This program will seek to ensure that law enforcement officers understand how and where the Byrna HD fits into the "Continuum of Force" and how they can use the Byrna HD and the available range of Byrna non-lethal projectiles to de-escalate a dangerous situation without the use of deadly force.
Leading Byrna's law enforcement business will be RJ Boatman, Executive Vice President for Governmental Affairs effective September 1, 2020. Prior to joining the Company in this capacity, he had been working with Byrna as a consultant for several months, spearheading the development of its law enforcement training program, and before that, he worked in law enforcement for more than 35 years. He is one of the most highly decorated law enforcement officers in the Country, having served in the capacities of Chief of Police, Organized Crime Board Governor, Federal Task Force Director, Emergency Management Coordinator, State Education Director, Adjunct University Professor, Investigative Consultant and Municipal Judge. Chief Boatman also received various awards and a number of certifications including, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration's Regional Award for Outstanding Service and the Gulf Coast Violent Offender Taskforce Award, and has been a qualified expert for courtroom testimony specializing in law enforcement policy, procedures and ethics, and the use and application of force in law enforcement. He also is a nationally recognized keynote speaker, focusing on effective and sustainable alternatives to less-lethal force and building relationships between law enforcement officers and the communities that they serve. Chief Boatman is a graduate of the Law Enforcement Management Institute of Texas and the Department of State Diplomatic Security Services Academy. He has taught various courses at regional training facilities of both the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.
"Police officers have long needed an alternative to using deadly force," Chief Boatman commented. "Byrna is out in front of this swelling demand, offering what I believe to be the best alternative to lethal force that a law enforcement professional can carry every day. Police frequently work in harsh environments and the Byrna HD is second to none in terms of reliability. Also, relative to other less-lethal defense devices, a Byrna HD can be effectively deployed with a high degree of accuracy from a distance of more than 60 feet, which provides a law enforcement officer with two critical advantages when faced with a potentially dangerous and inflammatory situation: time and distance. Another highly attractive attribute of the Byrna HD device is its versatility, with the ability to fire projectiles that deliver both the impact of a kinetic round and the disorienting effects of chemical agents, in a less-lethal manner. This versatility will allow law enforcement agencies to utilize the Byrna in a manner that better complies with the policies and procedures of their particular department."
Chief Boatman continued, "Even with several highly attractive characteristics, the Byrna HD, like any self defense device, is only as good as the capabilities of its user. As such, we've developed a training program to equip police officers with the knowledge and skill set they need to safely and effectively utilize our device in their communities in a wide range of scenarios. There are more than 700,000 police officers in the U.S. alone, and adding to that corrections and probation officers, private security firms and international law enforcement agencies, we believe that we have an extremely large addressable market. More importantly, similar to our goal in marketing the Byrna HD to consumers for home safety and self-defense as an alternative to lethal force, our objective with our law enforcement business is to help police officers and citizens "Live Safe" within the communities where our devices are used."
Bryan Ganz, CEO of Byrna Technologies, stated, "Now more than ever, it has become apparent that law enforcement professionals across the globe need more and better options to safely and effectively disarm assailants and de-escalate threats without needing to resort to lethal force. Appropriately arming, educating and training our law enforcement and security officers, will give them the tools and training needed to handle a wide variety of situations and better equips them to make decisions and take actions leading to safer outcomes in potentially lethal situations, ultimately leading to stronger relationships with the communities they serve."
Mr. Ganz continued, "We're very fortunate that RJ has agreed to lead Byrna's introduction of the Byrna HD into the law enforcement arena. We expect his extensive experience in law enforcement to help us establish and cultivate an increasingly strong rapport with numerous governmental and private agencies. We believe his unique expertise in training with less-lethal methods of enforcement will make him invaluable in the education process surrounding the Byrna HD and potential new self-defense products our company may introduce. On behalf of our Board and management team, I welcome RJ to the Byrna family; we look forward to working with him as we pursue Byrna's continued growth and development."
The Company also recently made its first large scale international sale of 1,100 Byrna HD launchers to a special purpose unit of the Hong Kong police after being selected from several competitive products that were tested. Based on requests for testing units by international law enforcement agencies, Byrna has confidence in the potential of the international market.
About Byrna Technologies Inc.
Byrna is an emerging non-lethal technology company, specializing in the development and manufacture of innovative less-lethal equipment and munitions. For more information on the Company, please visit the corporate website here or the company's investor relations site here. The Company is the manufacturer of the Byrna®HD personal security device, which looks to be the leading choice in the consumer and private security markets for non-lethal home protection, personal safety, and security.
About the Byrna® HD
The Byrna HD is the Company's first personal security device designed for the consumer and private security markets. The Byrna HD is engineered with patented designs and proprietary parts to provide an effective non-lethal option for home safety and personal security with the form factor of a compact handgun. The Byrna HD is easy to use, with virtually no recoil and can be fitted with a laser or light to facilitate accurate shooting even by non-gun owners. Unlike pepper spray and stun guns or Tasers, it provides a safety zone of 60 feet and comes with multiple easily reloadable magazines that can hold five .68 caliber hard kinetic rounds or highly effective payload rounds designed to burst on impact. Payload rounds include the Company's proprietary chemical irritant and pepper rounds designed to burn an assailant's eyes and respiratory system upon contact. The Byrna HD is not a "firearm" and does not require a background check but it is subject to certain state and local regulation. Always check local laws before purchasing or travelling with a Byrna HD or other CO2 powered or "pepper spray" type device. To purchase Byrna® products visit the Company's e-commerce store or locate a dealer here.
Forward Looking Information
This news release contains "forward-looking statements" and "forward-looking information" (collectively, "forward-looking information") within the meaning of applicable U.S. and Canadian securities legislation. All information contained in this news release, other than statements of current and historical fact, is forward-looking information. Often, but not always, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "budget", "guidance", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "strategy", "target", "intends", "objective", "goal", "understands", "anticipates" and "believes" (and variations of these or similar words) and statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "should", "might," "occur" or "be achieved" or "will be taken" (and variations of these or similar expressions). Forward-looking information is also identifiable in statements of currently occurring matters which may continue in the future, such as "providing the Company with", "is currently", "allows/allowing for", "will advance" or "continues to" or other statements that may be stated in the present tense with future implications. All of the forward-looking information in this news release is qualified by this cautionary note. Forward-looking information in this news release includes, but is not limited to the Company's expectations relating to its new professional-focused division, the potential of the Byrna HD in de-escalating police engagement, better equipping police to handle a variety of situations, and improving police-community relations, the Byrna HD's utility to help reduce the need for and use of lethal force, and RJ Boatman's ability to help the Company build relationships and expand its law enforcement business. Forward-looking information is not, and cannot be, a guarantee of future results or events. Forward-looking information is based on, among other things, opinions, assumptions, estimates and analyses that, while considered reasonable by the Company at the date the forward-looking information is provided, inherently are subject to significant risks, uncertainties, contingencies and other factors that may cause actual results and events to be materially different from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking information.
The material factors or assumptions that the Company identified and were applied by the Company in drawing conclusions or making forecasts or projections set out in the forward-looking information include, but are not limited to, the Company's ability to meet anticipated demand from its new sales channels including as a result of potential disruption due to the pandemic, civil unrest or otherwise that impacts the Company's production, distribution or supply chain including third parties outside of the Company's control, the success of the Company's products in de-escalating police situations and reducing the use of lethal force, the Company's ability to displace competitors and sign and retain law enforcement and other professional agencies, the success of the T3 and other training programs, product recalls, legal developments or personnel turnover that could impact the sale of or market for the Company's products or prevent or threaten to prevent the Company's sales, timely financial reporting, or the listing of the Company's securities, less than anticipated demand due to competition, inability to fill orders promptly, insufficient cash to meet increased production costs or increased costs of sales and one time transaction costs whether related to the pandemic or otherwise, negative market response to the Company's products, negative events or events and political and civil movements that could potentially reduce demand for the Company's product or cause cancellations, and a possible decline in market price of the Company's stock or market wide events that result in an unanticipated number of order cancelations. Should one or more risk, uncertainty, contingency, or other factor materialize, or should any factor or assumption prove incorrect, actual results could vary materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking information. Accordingly, the reader should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information after the date of this news release or to explain any material difference between subsequent actual events and any forward-looking information, except as required by applicable law.
SOURCE Byrna Technologies Inc.
Byrna Technologies, Inc., Lisa Wager, Chief Legal Officer, 978-665-2721; Investor Relations Counsel: The Equity Group Inc., Fred Buonocore, CFA, 212-836-9607, Mike Gaudreau 212-836-9620, https://byrna.com
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