SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., July 24, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Axon (Nasdaq:
AAXN), formerly TASER International, the global leader in less
lethal conducted electrical weapon (CEW) technologies, today
announced the entry of a broad permanent injunction against
Florida-based Phazzer Electronics,
Inc. banning sales of the infringing Phazzer Enforcer CEWs and dart
cartridges. The injunction entered Friday by the U.S. District
Court for the Middle District of Florida prohibits Phazzer and its officers,
agents, employees, and anyone else acting in concert with them,
from making, using, offering for sale, selling, distributing,
importing or exporting Phazzer CEWs and associated cartridges.
Phazzer is further enjoined from dumping its infringing inventory
by "donating" CEWs to law enforcement, and from false advertising
and comparison to TASER® brand products.
The Court's Order has clear international consequences since
both Phazzer and its U.S. distributors are barred from exporting
CEWs or cartridges to fill foreign orders. The injunction also
makes clear that nonparties who assist Phazzer in violating the
injunction, including specifically Taiwanese CEW manufacturer Sang
Min International and Double Dragon Development and Trading
Corporation, may be held in contempt of court.
"This is a huge win for us," said Doug
Klint, Axon General Counsel. "We aggressively defend our
intellectual property rights and have a proven track record of
success in litigating these cases. We successfully prosecuted
infringement cases with Stinger Systems and Karbon Arms before
Phazzer. Willful infringement of our weapons technology will never
be tolerated, and we will not allow competitors to trade on TASER's
goodwill and reputation for quality," Klint said.
TASER obtained a judgment and permanent injunction against
Stinger Systems' infringing S-200 CEW in 2010, and against Karbon
Arms' infringing MPID CEW in 2014, putting both companies out of
business. Phazzer is now also apparently "insolvent," according to
documents publicly filed by its counsel.
In imposing severe sanctions against Phazzer, including an award
of Axon's attorneys' fees and costs, the Court found that Phazzer
"engaged in a pattern of bad faith conduct designed and intended to
delay, stall, and increase the cost of this litigation," and that
Phazzer repeatedly disregarded Court Orders thereby exhibiting
"contemptuous", "egregious", "flagrant" and "intentional
obstructionist behavior" resulting in willful "abuse [of] the
judicial process." "It is truly stunning," Klint said, "that a
company which seeks to do business with law enforcement would show
such distain to the Court and our system of justice."
Axon's patent (U.S. No. 7,234,262) at issue in the litigation
(Case No. 6:16-cv-00366-PGB-KRS) relates to the CEW's data
recording of date and time of each trigger operation and duration
of the stimulus. The Court found that patent was "valid,
enforceable, and infringed by Phazzer." The injunction will remain
in effect until the patent expires, and includes any CEW or device
not colorably different from the Phazzer Enforcer CEW.
The Axon trademark that is the subject of the injunction is
Federal Registration No. 4,423,789, relating to the non-functional
shape of TASER CEW cartridges used to launch the darts. The Court
found the trademark "valid and enforceable, not generic,
functional, or merely descriptive, and infringed by Phazzer." The
permanent injunction covers all Phazzer CEW dart cartridges that
are confusingly similar to, or not more than a colorable imitation
of, TASER CEW cartridges, and expressly includes Phazzer product
numbers 1-DC15, 1-DC21, 1-DC25, 1-DC21-SIDT, 1-PB30, 1-PB8F,
1-PB15943, 1-RB30, 1-PA30, and 1-LOWIMPT2015.
The Court expressly found that Phazzer cartridges currently
marketed and sold as compatible with TASER brand CEWs embody the
protected appearance and constitute infringing products enjoined
under its Order. Phazzer was also ordered by the Court "not [to]
challenge or continue to challenge the validity or enforceability
of the '789 Registration in any manner in any forum, including the
USTPO." Accordingly, Phazzer's pending USPTO cancellation action,
which was stayed while the litigation ran its course, will be
dismissed.
About Axon
The Axon network is a network of devices, apps and people that
helps law enforcement become smarter and safer. Our mission is to
protect life. Our technologies give law enforcement the confidence,
focus and time they need to keep their communities safe. Our
products impact every aspect of an officer's day-to-day
experience:
- In the field - Our Smart Weapons offer a less-lethal
intermediate use of force response and our body-worn and in-car
cameras collect video evidence to capture the truth of an incident;
and our mobile applications enable simple evidence collection.
- At the station - Our secure, cloud-based digital
evidence management solution allows officers and command staff to
manage, review, share and process digital evidence using forensic,
redaction, transcription, and other tools.
- In the courtroom - Our solutions for prosecutors make
collaborating across jurisdictions and agencies easy so that cases
can be resolved quickly.
We work hard for those who put themselves in harm's way for all
of us. To date, there are more than 100,000 licensed users from
around the world and more than 185,000 lives and countless dollars
have been saved with the Axon network of devices, apps and people.
Learn more at www.axon.com or by calling (800) 978-2737.
Axon, the "Axon Delta" logo, Axon network, Smart Weapons, X2,
X26P, TASER, Evidence.com, and 'Protect Life' are trademarks of
Axon Enterprise, Inc., some of which are registered in the U.S. and
other countries. For more information, visit www.axon.com/legal.
All rights reserved.
Follow Axon here:
- Axon on Twitter: https://twitter.com/axon_us
- Axon on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/Axon.ProtectLife/
Note to Investors
Please visit http://investor.axon.com,
https://www.axon.com/press, www.twitter.com/axon_us and
https://www.facebook.com/Axon.ProtectLife/ where Axon discloses
information about the company, its financial information, and its
business.
Visit our Investor Relations Safe Harbor Statement at:
http://investor.axon.com/safeHarbor.cfm
For investor relations information please contact Arvind Bobra via email at IR@axon.com.
CONTACT: Steve Tuttle
Vice President of Strategic Communications
Axon
Press@axon.com
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SOURCE Axon