The new AI weapons detection system installed in December in the Upper Darby School District detected seven knives or box cutters, two brass knuckles, and seven pepper spray devices.
No guns were detected.
The end-of-school-year list was provided by School District Superintendent Daniel McGarry who gave a progress report on the Evolv technology, reports Madeleine Wright for CBS News Philadelphia.
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“We don’t have any evidence that these weapons were coming on campus as a use of force,” McGarry said. “It was usually an awkwardness like, ‘I had this because I was cutting food.’”
Evolv, uses artificial intelligence to scan for potential weapons. It’s being used at the high school as well as Beverly Hills and Drexel Hill Middle Schools.
“There was fear and some trepidation that it would take hours to get kids into the school, that we would over-identify and improperly search kids,” McGarry said. “Thanks to the work of our kids and our school community, none of those things actually happened.”
Found weapons were turned over to police and a background check done on the families, as well as a threat assessment in some cases.
Evoly came to the school district after two firearms-related incidents in September.
Find out more about the new technology’s performance at CBS News Philadelphia.
