The need,
solution, and implementation
for safer courthouses, schools,
hospitals, and churches from
It can
also come from disturbed teens, religious fanatics, angered spouses, drug
abusers, and the mentally ill along with many others.
The places most at risk are those where (a) large numbers of people
congregate (schools, churches, large buildings), (b) places where anger is often
expressed (i.e. courtrooms, revenue offices, commission/council meetings, etc.).
The
recent courtroom tragedy in Atlanta, GA was a classic example of a failed system
along with the school shooting in Minnesota (preceded by Colorado, Arkansas and
elsewhere). Traditional thinking
has centered on keeping bad people out with things like metal detectors. The fact is that the majority of metal detectors in public
buildings are not used. Why?
Because there is no one available to man them!
Additionally, the real problems generally come from those who are ALREADY
INSIDE the facility!
Clearly,
a new way is needed to protect personnel, students, and visitors.
Falcon Direct is pleased to offer a solution based on a partnership
between the the public, law enforcement and Falcon Direct as a technology
partner with all three, working together to make
courtrooms, schools, and churches safer.
In rural communities, it is rare to
find a full time law enforcement officer assigned in courtrooms or in judicial
offices. If there is a problem in
the courtroom or clerk/judges office, it can quickly escalate into a serious
event with immediate intervention by law enforcement.
A pilot
program developed between the Conecuh County Judicial System, the City of
Evergreen Police Department, and Falcon Direct provided a better solution.
This
solution is now available for use in any community where a working agreement can
be implemented between local law enforcement, the user and Falcon Direct who
developed a unique wireless emergency notification system now known as The
Companion.
In
essence, this system is custom built to allow one or more users equipped with
wireless calling buttons to summon immediate law enforcement assistance. The process is simple. The
user is provided with a key chain type device similar to one used to remotely
unlock a vehicle. When the button
is pressed for several seconds, a signal is sent to the Companion call box that reads
the button code and in turn transmits an emergency voice message on the local
law enforcement VHF or UHF radio frequency.
A typical
message would be something like Assistance needed in Courtroom Two.
Response time is immediate with no delays for third party alarm services or even
9-1-1 dispatching. The calls go
directly to all officers on duty within range of the agency 2-way radio system.
The standard Companion system is priced at $3,995 to equip all courtrooms, the circuit clerk's office, circuit judge's office, district clerk's office, district judge's office, and juvenile probation office.
In Alabama, your first step is to call Chuck Haveard who is charge of court security with the Alabama Office of Courts (AOC). Chuck's office number is 334.954.5036. Tell Chuck you want to install a Companion system for court security. If approved, call Burch Falkner at 1.800.489.2611 Ext. 22 and request an invoice. We will send the invoice and schedule delivery of your equipment. That's all there is to it! Outside Alabama, there may or may not be funding available for Circuit Court approval. Check with your local state Office of Courts or your local Homeland Security point of contact (generally the EMA Director) for additional information on funding availability in your area.
After installation in the courtrooms
and office annex, the Evergreen Police Department recognized there were other
applications for this technology. Companion
units were offered to merchants in the community who were at risk of armed
robbery. With a typical cost of
around twelve hundred dollars to the merchant with no monthly fees, this proved to be
a valued service to the community while simultaneously allowing response times
to be cut in half.
In the
courthouse, an obvious need for providing emergency calling was evident not only
in the courtrooms but in other areas as well as the county commission chambers,
revenue clerks office, adult probation officers office, probate judge, and clerks
office.
A visit
to the local school superintendents office revealed that there were times when
disruptions in the school could be more quickly resolved through faster
assistance calling systems.
The funny
thing is that the entire concept of the Companion system was developed based on
the need of a church secretary in Guin, Alabama who worked alone and wanted some
type of direct contact with the police department in the event of an emergency.
From that simple need has grown a system capable of improving safety in
courthouse, schools, churches, and the merchant community, but there were other
things that could be done to further improve safety.
About Falcon Direct.......
We've been in beautiful downtown Center Point (suburb of Birmingham), since 1987 in a 4000 square foot building jointly owned by Charles Poe Realty and Falcon Direct, Inc. We occupy about two thirds of the building with offices rented to Associated Press and an independent insurance agent. The remainder is used by Charles Poe as real estate sales offices.
Our sales offices, warehouse & shipping area, plus manufacturing and repair facilities are all housed under one roof. The tower you see at the rear of the building provides a control link for our privately owned and operated paging system as well as a GPS vehicle tracking network that will soon be offered to Birmingham area users.
If you look closely, you will see a side mount antenna bracket near the top of the tower that supports two short antennas with reflector plates. These antennas are currently being used for a broadband 2.4 GHZ wireless Internet broadcasting system designed to provide affordable high speed Internet service to local area merchants.
We are constantly testing cutting edge wireless technology in a variety of different applications. Our offices are equipped with wireless Internet surveillance cameras, broadband wireless phone service and a wireless security system. New products such as wireless courtroom emergency calling systems, wireless portable stake out systems for law enforcement and other new products are designed, tested, and produced here.
Prior to 1990, our primary business was that of serving as a Manufacturers Representative working with dealers throughout the Southeast with companies such as Fujitsu Ten, Tait Electronics, Reach Inc., Telemobile, TPL Communications and Zetron. In this capacity, we were recognized as one of the top ten communications manufacturers representatives in the USA by RCR Communications magazine. We were instrumental in setting up a nationwide FM broadcast sub-carrier paging system and installation of a statewide mobile repeater system for the North Carolina State Highway Patrol. Our primary responsibility was in training and support of 2-way radio dealers as well as direct sales to larger accounts. Our corporate name prior to 1990 was Nu-Way Marketing, Inc.
By 1990, we had concluded that wide area travel was not productive for our endeavors. We saw an emerging trend toward nationwide marketing first by direct mail and media followed later by the Internet. We decided to gradually phase out of our manufacturers representative role and evolve into a direct marketing company. A new name that better reflected these activities was chosen based on the old English origin of our founders name (Falcon, from falconer for the present name, Falkner), and Direct to emphasize our direct customer relationship. Falcon Direct, as the company is now known was chartered initially to serve primarily volunteer fire departments nationwide with a secondary emphasis on power utilities and corporate users. By the mid 90's we added church, institutional, and hospital users. Our focus today remains on these same basic accounts with the addition of associations and law enforcement users.
During the peak of the cell phone market, we operated three retail outlets in Birmingham, Center Point, and Pinson, Alabama with an initial focus on sales of Powertel (now T-Mobile), Nextel, and most recently Sprint PCS. We were a leading reseller for Powertel, consistently in the top five Nextel indirect channel partners, and one of only a few selected by Sprint to focus exclusively on business accounts under a special agreement. As the cellular business became more consumer focused, we decided to phase out our retail stores and return to the endeavors we enjoy most - working directly with corporate, institutional, and government users.
By 2000, we had developed the capability to design, manufacture and support a specialized family of products especially suited to the needs of those we serve. Our first product was an on-site paging terminal known as the NotiSender-DT. This was followed by a direct dial access terminal known as the NotiSender-DA and a range extender known as the NotiSender-DX. By 2004, we were offering high reliability power supplies and most recently we have developed a wireless calling system for courtroom security and a wireless temporary state out device for law enforcement. We have provided special products for Los Alamos and Sandia Labs and serve as a supplier to numerous federal and state agencies.
Currently, we are one of the top Motorola resellers in the USA, a primary supplier to the majority of Alabama Fire Departments, one of only four North American distributors for Swissphone pagers, and a pioneer in promoting products and services via the Internet.
What will we do next? Stay tuned!
36 - 20th Avenue
NW - Birmingham, AL 35215
Phone 1.800.489.2611 - Fax 205.853.6178
Copyright 2005 - Falcon Direct, Inc.
This page was last updated on 01/25/2007