Dunn County approves five-year Axon package for body cameras, in-car systems and tasers
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Summary
The Dunn County Board of Commissioners approved a five‑year proposal to replace body-worn cameras, upgrade in-car systems and move to multi‑shot tasers and automated evidence tools. The county authorized initial payments for 2026 and committed to a multi-year contract; the board voted to approve the program.
The Dunn County Board of Commissioners voted to approve a multi-year equipment and software package from Axon to upgrade the sheriff’s office body-worn cameras, in-car systems and tasers.
Kevin Pierpore, an Axon account manager, told the board the Fleet 3 platform includes auto-activation features, license-plate reading, AI-assisted transcription and report-drafting tools intended to speed evidence management and reduce overtime. “The system that we're proposing is what's called Fleet 3,” Pierpore said, describing automation that can trigger cameras and tag evidence automatically.
Pierpore said the proposal also includes upgraded multi‑shot tasers to replace aging, out-of-warranty models and allow officers multiple deployment opportunities in difficult conditions. He characterized the package as enhancing both officer safety and community transparency and noted similar systems in use by other North Dakota agencies.
Sheriff Goon and several commissioners voiced support for the acquisition, stressing officer safety. Commissioner support led to a motion to approve the program as presented; the motion passed on a roll-call vote.
Financial details presented at the meeting called for a minimal entry payment for 2026 (about $1,000) with multi‑year financing thereafter. Pierpore said the vendor’s finance team had secured discounts and outlined ongoing costs but did not present a final five‑year total during the public presentation. The board directed staff to incorporate the program into future budgets and line items for subsequent years.
The board also approved donating an older county computer and docking station to the Killdeer Ambulance to enable mobile CAD access in a quick response vehicle; that motion passed separately during the same segment.
What happens next: staff will finalize contract paperwork and work out budget timing for the multi‑year payments. The sheriff’s office will coordinate implementation and training with the vendor.
