A dramatic standoff with two young boys who had a loaded handgun in the backyard of an Albuquerque, New Mexico, home was de-escalated by deputies with the help of a drone.
Recently released video footage of the incident, which happened in February, shows Bernalillo County sheriff’s deputies responding to the home, where a 9-year-old and a 7-year-old boy could be seen holding a loaded gun.
“I literally have my hand on the trigger,” one of the boys is heard saying.
“Let’s not do that. Let’s take our hand off, buddy. Let’s put it on the ground,” one of the deputies replied.
After talking to the boys for about five minutes, deputies fired a non-lethal projectile toward the boys and moved in quickly at the right angle to grab the gun from the kids.
County Sheriff John Allen credits the department’s drone program for the safe ending of the high-risk situation. The drone helped provide a key vantage point.
“The drone is great because it de-escalates, and it makes sure that our deputies gain cover, and then we can start de-escalating and speaking to the children,” he told CBS News.
The situation with the two boys was very complex, Allen said. The department has been to the home over 50 times, he said.
“There’s a lot of domestic violence issues involved in this case,” he said.
So far, no charges have been filed in the incident. Authorities are working to get the family trauma therapy and behavioral support.
“I’m trying everything in my power as the sheriff to make sure that we don’t utilize deadly force on a child,” Allen said, adding that this was the third case he’s seen that the drone program helped prevent a deadly force confrontation with a juvenile.
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