Florida School District Buys Vape Detectors After Juul Settlement

Florida and Juul have reached a multi-state settlement agreement whereby Juul will pay millions of dollars in compensation to each state.

Juul has reached a settlement with 37 states and Puerto Rico over its marketing of electronic cigarettes to minors and misrepresenting the nicotine content in its products. The Orange County Public Schools (OCPS) has just learned that they will receive $5.4 million as part of the settlement agreement.

The Orange County Public Schools announced that they intend to use the funds to purchase e-cigarette detectors to safeguard students. They also plan on offering counseling to students who are caught vaping on campus.

According to data from Triton Sensors, electronic cigarette detectors are now installed in hundreds of school districts across the country, including in the state of Florida. Triton began manufacturing sensors similar to smoke detectors three years ago to help combat what they call the e-cigarette epidemic.

Garrison Parthemore, sales manager at Triton, said, "It's like a glorified smoke detector, but instead of detecting smoke, it detects the smell of electronic cigarettes. It won't sound alarms throughout the entire school, but rather send simple messages, emails or push notifications to nearby teachers.

OCPS informed FOX 35 News that parents will need to wait for some time before they can see these devices in schools. Before purchasing these devices, they still need to receive funding and bypass some hurdles.

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Orange County officials are investing in vape detectors after receiving a $5.4 million settlement from Juul.