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Inglewood council approves $6.28 million public-safety technology package, including counter‑UAS grant and Axon system
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Summary
The Inglewood City Council voted to adopt a resolution accepting a FY2026 federal counter‑UAS grant and approving a public‑safety technology package not to exceed $6,275,772 that includes Axon evidence/cloud integration, body‑worn cameras and drone capabilities; council members stressed training, policy and public input before full implementation.
The Inglewood City Council voted to adopt a resolution authorizing acceptance of a FY2026 counter‑unmanned aircraft system grant and to approve a public‑safety technology package not to exceed $6,275,772, including an evidence management system and expanded body‑worn camera coverage.
Mayor James T. Butts Jr. opened discussion by saying the city has made long‑term progress on public safety and described the package as necessary “because people are using drones for all kinds of nefarious things,” and to modernize investigative tools and officer safety.
Police leadership outlined key elements of the package: integration with an Axon evidence management system (evidence.com), centralized records and a real‑time crime center, expanded body‑worn cameras, and a counter‑UAS capability funded in part by a federal grant the chief said is “almost $2,800,000.” The chief told the council the equipment was selected after regional and national reviews and said the vendor (Axon) has agreed to upgrade paths as the technology evolves.
Council members pressed staff on cost, timeline, training and oversight. One councilmember said technology alone does not create public trust and urged that the city tie the rollout to formal training, clear policy and meaningful public input. The chief responded that policies are available online and that staff plan to incorporate training and accountability measures; he said some components could be deployed in two to three months while others could roll out through the end of the year. Councilmembers and staff said they will pursue outside grants to offset costs and noted the financing package reduces the first‑year local cost to about $800,000.
The council moved and seconded the resolution and the clerk recorded unanimous affirmative votes from the members present in the transcript. Following the vote, the city manager was authorized to negotiate and execute an agreement with Axon Enterprise Inc. for the technology package.
The council and police officials said next steps include finalizing vendor contracts, developing public‑facing policies and a community engagement plan on oversight, and establishing training timelines; no specific public meeting date for those policy discussions was given in the transcript.
