The Charles County Sheriff’s Office is moving forward with body-worn cameras for all officers on the force, the agency announced last week.
The agency has been preparing for the program and the funding has been fully authorized for implementation, according to a release from the sheriff’s office.
“These devices not only protect the rights of citizens but also provide an unbiased record of our officers' actions. We welcome the implementation of body-worn cameras as a tool that not only safeguards the public but also ensures the highest standards of professionalism among our law enforcement personnel," Sheriff Troy Berry (D) said in the release.
Deployment of body-worn cameras for Charles sheriff's officers began with a pilot program and the agency expects all officers to be trained and have their new devices operational in 2025.
The sheriff’s office worked with a group of officers to test the functions, reliability and viability of the cameras and ensure the infrastructure, technology, and staffing are in place for a successful deployment agency-wide, the release said.
Charles County government approved additional support staff positions needed to handle the administrative side of this large-scale program, which the agency is in the process of filling.
Concurrently, the Charles County Sheriff’s Office Information Technology Division undertook extensive training, including practical exercises to prepare to effectively manage the needs of this new technology as it is deployed into the field.
Officers will be issued a body-worn camera, and the camera will generally be worn when working on an operational assignment. Before being issued a body-worn camera, officers will be required to complete training related to the operation of the device and review the sheriff's office's policy.
Officers will manually activate body-worn cameras at the outset of a call for service, during encounters with members of the public that are investigative or enforcement in nature, or during any encounter that becomes confrontational in nature. The cameras are automatically activated every time an officer turns on emergency equipment in a patrol car, the release said.
Officers will activate body-worn cameras for legitimate law enforcement purposes only. The cameras record video from the 60 seconds before their activation. An officer who activates a body-worn camera for a law enforcement purpose will not intentionally deactivate it without a clear investigative purpose, according to the release.
When responding to kindergarten through 12 educational institutions, hospitals, or other medical facilities, officers will refrain from activating the camera unless necessary for law enforcement purposes. Charles County Sheriff’s Office officers are required to inform any person at the start of any recording that audio and video are being recorded by the officer's body-worn camera, unless unsafe, impractical or impossible to do so.
The sheriff’s office will release body-worn camera footage consistent with the Maryland Public Information Act and other applicable state and federal statutes and regulations and in consultation with the Charles County State’s Attorney’s Office. Each video will be assessed on a case-by-case basis.
External requests for recordings, other than from law enforcement agencies, will be processed in accordance with the Charles County Sheriff’s Office public access to records policy. Any third party that is not a law-enforcement agency will pay any costs associated with the preparation, review, and production of body-worn camera videos.
Requests for video records should be sent to the Charles County Sheriff’s Office Records Section via the agency website at https://ccso-md.nextrequest.com.
Private information will be redacted before a video’s release in compliance with all records release laws and regulations. An officer cannot delete or alter recordings, the release said.
“As we move forward, we are committed to leveraging these tools responsibly, ensuring they become an integral part of our commitment to justice and the shared goal of fostering safer, more secure neighborhoods for all,” Berry said.
Most Popular
Comments / 0