Weapon detectors and speeding cameras? Manatee County school year brings big changes

Big changes are coming to Manatee County schools this year.

On the first day of school on Monday, you can expect to see weapon detectors in high schools and cameras that ticket drivers speeding through school zones.

Here’s what you need to know.

Weapon detectors in Manatee high schools

Starting this year, high schoolers will go through weapon detectors every morning to get to class.

Two guardians, or armed security officers, will monitor the Evolv Express scanners, which use advanced sensor technology and artificial intelligence to detect weapons. The Guardians will search bags that set off the scanner’s alarm.

“This is gonna cause kids who may have brought something to double think that because they know they’re going to be checked every single day instead of at random,” School Board chairman Chad Choate III said.

The goal is to prevent students from bringing weapons to schools and lower the risk of violent incidents, a district official said.

The Evolv Express scanners , first tested in a pilot program at high schools last year, will also be used to search for weapons at extracurricular events, such as football games. The district could put the weapon detectors at middle schools at a later date, a district official said.

The Evolv Express scanners are found at the entrances of professional sporting events, Disney parks and New York City subway stations.

Speeding cameras in local school zones

Starting Monday, drivers caught on camera speeding near schools will get off with a warning.

But after a month-long grace period, drivers going more than 10 miles over the posted speed limit in school zones will get a $100 fine but no points against their driver’s license.

The RedSpeed cameras will be active 30 minutes before the school day starts and 30 minutes after the school day ends. The cameras will also be active during the school day, ticketing drivers for going 10 miles over the regular speed limit while school is in session.

The camera vendor, Cambridge, Maryland-based RedSpeed, has contracts with 100 municipalities across five states, according to its website. RedSpeed says its technology can “improve driver and community safety.”

The vendor installed the cameras for free, the Bradenton Herald previously reported, but RedSpeed gets $30 from every ticket that is issued.

Manatee County Government and city of Bradenton officials voted earlier this year to approve the installation of the speed cameras in local school zones.

A district official pointed out that some school zones do not have flashing lights warning drivers to slow down. School Board member Richard Tatem said school zone signs can be hard for drivers to see.

“People will probably get tagged by this not because they’re not trying but because they just don’t see the sign,” Tatem said. “Maybe they’ll have to get a ticket to see it but next time they’ll know.”

Each violation will be reviewed by the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office before the driver is issued a ticket, according to a news release.

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