SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., 6 January 2005. TASER International, Inc., a manufacturer of advanced non-lethal devices, today announced that it is cooperating with an informal inquiry letter from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
The company is compiling information to assist the SEC in two areas: company statements regarding the safety of TASER products and a recent order received from Davidson's, Inc.
"We are confident our statements are supported by the safety studies of our products," said Rick Smith, CEO of TASER International, Inc.
"We are in the process of compiling the information requested by the SEC and look forward to working with them as we have with other independent entities interested in the safety of TASER devices such as the United States Department of Defense, the Home Office of the United Kingdom and other governmental agencies in the United States and abroad. Our public statements about the safety of TASER devices are consistent with those of medical experts that we have consulted, or in the case of the Department of Defense, were reviewed and approved prior to release by the very agencies that have commissioned the research."
Smith continued: "Davidson's Inc. has been a distributor for TASER International since 1999. Davidson's most recent order was received and shipped in the normal course of business in the fourth quarter of 2004. It followed a 60-day test market for our new X26C Citizens' Defense System that included two of Davidson's firearms dealers. As a result, we were pleased to secure Davidson's as the exclusive distributor for this market segment with an agreement providing Davidson's the exclusive distribution rights to Federal Firearms License (FFL) dealers. Davidson's ordered an initial 1,000 TASER X26C systems, costing less than one million dollars, for distribution to their dealers with no right to return the product. This order was announced together with an order for other law enforcement products which brought the total order to $1.5 million."
The conclusion of the informal inquiry letter from the SEC to TASER International specifies, "This inquiry is non-public and should not be construed as an indication by the Commission or its staff that any violation of law has occurred, nor should it be considered a reflection upon any person, entity or security."
TASER International, Inc. provides advanced non-lethal devices for use in the law enforcement, military, private security and personal defense markets. TASER devices use proprietary technology to safely incapacitate dangerous, combative or high-risk subjects who pose a risk to law enforcement officers, innocent citizens or themselves. TASER technology saves lives every day, and the use of TASER devices dramatically reduces injury rates for police officers and suspects and reduces litigation costs. TASER technology is currently in testing or deployment at over 6,000 law enforcement and correctional agencies in the U.S. and abroad. For more information see www.taser.com.
