The Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office has been named a finalist for a national award recognizing how deputies used drone technology to safely disarm two young children who were armed with a loaded handgun.
The sheriff’s office is competing for Skydio’s 2025 Lifesaving Achievement Award, with the winner to be determined by public voting at skydio.com/vote, according to a press release from the department.
The nomination stems from a February incident involving two children, ages 7 and 9, who deputies found armed with a fully loaded handgun. A Skydio drone provided real-time aerial surveillance that allowed deputies to monitor the children’s movements without escalating the situation, enabling them to disarm the boys without using deadly force, the release stated.
“The use of Skydio technology helped our deputies navigate one of the most difficult and emotionally charged calls of their careers,” Sheriff John Allen said in the release. “It gave us the ability to make informed, life-saving decisions that prevented tragedy.”
The Aerial Achievement Awards recognize missions where drones played critical roles in protecting lives, according to Skydio, a leading U.S. drone manufacturer specializing in autonomous flight technology.
The winner will be announced Wednesday night during the Aerial Achievement Awards Dinner at Skydio’s Ascend conference.