Dallas incident sparks debate about robots and deadly force

When the suspect in the Dallas police ambush was taken out, officers did so using a remote controlled robot that delivered a deadly payload of explosives.

Now, that tactic is sparking a nationwide debate about the mixing of high-tech gear and deadly force.

The maneuver in Dallas was a first of its kind, but one officer in Boulder thinks it was an innovative way to deal with an extreme threat.

Officer Ed Quayle is a bomb technician with the Boulder P.D.

“Admittedly, it’s not something we train for,” says Quayle, “but bomb technicians are very creative people and when we are confronted with a challenge, we have to come up with a way to solve it”

Quayle goes on to say that this likely won’t be the last time we see this tactic used.

He predicts the Dallas situation will be studied so that other departments will be able to implement it in a dire situation.

As for fears that autonomous robots will soon be armed and roaming the streets, Quayle says things couldn’t be further from the truth.

He stresses that tactical robots are simply remote controlled tools that still receive all of their instructions from a human operator.