SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., October 1, 2012 — TASER International, Inc. (NASDAQ: TASR), announced Saturday at the International Association of Chiefs of Police Foundation’s (IACP Foundation) Sixth Annual Fundraising Gala that it donated $300,000 in funds from its TASER Foundation to an IACP Foundation/TASER Fallen Officer Fund.
TASER also announced that the IACP Foundation will assume day-to-day management of the former TASER Foundation funds, including disbursement of grants to impacted families. The alliance is prompted by the organizations’ shared mission of supporting the law enforcement community and IACP’s deep global experience in foundation management.
“We are proud to entrust this significant donation to the IACP Foundation,” said Rick Smith, CEO and founder of TASER International, Inc., “because its leaders set the bar for effective, compassionate investing on behalf of officers around the world. The research, training and education provided by the IACP Foundation is best-in-class, and we believe that integrating our foundations will greatly enhance TASER’s ability to improve lives and promote officer safety within our professional community, across the globe. We felt that the IACP Foundation’s mission to support injured and fallen officers and their families, protect the safety of officers, and support the goals and programs of the IACP was a near perfect match for our own mission to protect life,” concluded Smith.
“We are thrilled to accept this generous donation from TASER and to align our philanthropic efforts going forward,” said Bart R. Johnson, IACP executive director and co-chair of the IACP Foundation. “For almost a decade, the TASER Foundation has honored the service and sacrifice of state, local and federal law enforcement officers in the United States and Canada, and IACP will continue TASER’s legacy. The significant funding provided by TASER today will help the IACP Foundation serve thousands of our colleagues, enabling them to stay safe, recover, retrain and be remembered.
TASER International, Inc. established the TASER Foundation for Fallen Officers in November 2004, to honor the service and sacrifice of local and federal law enforcement officers in the United States and Canada lost in the line of duty by providing financial support to their families.
The initial endowment of $1 million came from TASER International, Inc. and the direct contributions of TASER International employees. To date, the TASER Foundation has awarded more than $3 million to more than 1000 families of fallen law enforcement officers in the United States and Canada.
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About International Association of Chiefs of Police Foundation
The Mission of the IACP Foundation is to support injured and fallen officers and their families, protect the safety of officers, and support the goals and programs of the IACP. The Foundation is committed to creating a culture of officer safety, health and wellness by supporting IACP efforts that prevent officer injury and honoring the sacrifice made by the men and women of law enforcement.
IACP and Taser officials said they found nothing wrong with the gift, saying the contribution — the largest-ever to the association foundation — would provide funds to families of officers killed in the line of duty. Law enforcement and criminal justice analysts said the donation raises questions about the IACP’s ability to engage in future reviews involving the technology and whether the contribution represented a de-facto endorsement. “When you accept that kind of donation, you create an impression that you view the product favorably,” said Jim Pasco of the Fraternal Order of Police, the nation’s largest police union. “There is an appearance issue here.” Samuel Walker, a University of Nebraska criminologist who has written extensively on police accountability issues, said the relationship “raises serious concerns.” “It’s like a non-profit (group) taking funds from the tobacco industry and being involved in studies on smoking and lung cancer,” he said.