Body Worn Camera Systems Policy

What is the primary purpose of this standard operating procedure?

Who does this procedure apply to?

What is one of the values of BWC recordings according to the Sheriff’s Office?

What may not be captured by a body worn camera?

When may BWC recordings be considered?

What Florida Statute does not apply to BWC recordings made by law enforcement agencies?

What is an 'Active Recording'?

What is an example of 'Automatic Activation'?

What is Buffering Mode in a Body Worn Camera (BWC)?

What is a Category in a Body Worn Camera system?

What is a Compliance Review in a Body Worn Camera system?

What happens when a BWC is deactivated?

What is a Docking Station in a Body Worn Camera system?

What is an Evidentiary Recording in a Body Worn Camera system?

What is Manual Activation in a Body Worn Camera system?

What is Metadata in a Body Worn Camera system?

What is Mute Mode in a Body Worn Camera system?

What is an Official Law Enforcement Activity?

When are sworn personnel allowed to power off their BWC?

When should sworn personnel manually activate their BWC?

Why might sworn personnel activate their BWC in mute mode?

What should sworn personnel do if their BWC fails to activate or record an entire event?

Under what circumstances may sworn personnel inform subjects that they are being recorded?

What should sworn personnel do if they fail to activate their BWC or fail to record an entire event?

What should sworn personnel do if they believe a recording has captured misconduct or criminal activity?

When should sworn personnel ensure their BWC is in buffering mode?

What is not a permitted use of a BWC?

Why might automatic activation triggers serve as a backup?

What is the primary purpose of the Q.Watch Me feature in Axon Body 4?

Who is responsible for determining if their actions involve official law enforcement activity?

Which of the following personnel are not required to wear their BWC while on duty?

What is the requirement for sworn personnel regarding the operation of their BWC during a shift or assignment?

What should sworn personnel do if they determine their BWC is damaged or not operating correctly?

What is the requirement for detectives regarding the wear of their BWC while wearing their tactical exterior vest?

What type of mount is required for sworn personnel wearing a Class A, Class B, Street Crimes uniform, or training uniform?

What is the purpose of the operational checks for sworn personnel at the start of each shift or assignment?

Who is responsible for training personnel regarding the operation of the BWC equipment and Sheriff's Office policies and procedures?

What should sworn personnel do if they need assistance in attempting to recover lost data from their BWC?

Who reviews and redacts the BWC recording prior to release?

What is the purpose of the Public Affairs Office reviewing and redacting the BWC recording?

Who may access a BWC recording of their direct subordinate?

What is the purpose of the Training Division accessing BWC recordings?

How long are BWC recordings of non-evidentiary events retained?

What is the purpose of the BWCSA periodically auditing stored BWC recordings?

Under what circumstances can a BWC be livestreamed?

What happens to a BWC recording after 90 days if it is not related to an investigation?

Who may categorize a BWC recording as 'Private'?

What is the purpose of the BWC recording being designated as 'Restricted'?

What is the minimum number of days a personnel must be on leave or in 'Other Than Full Duty' status to be eligible for an exception to the number of video reviews?

What type of incidents require supervisors to review BWC recordings?

Why should supervisors not view BWC recordings?

What is the purpose of the Professional Standards Bureau reviewing BWC recordings?

How should requests for BWC recordings from the Office of the State Attorney be processed?

Who should sworn personnel forward requests for BWC recordings from outside agencies to?

What should supervisors do to ensure the BWC system is functional?

How should public records requests for BWC recordings be coordinated?

Who reviews and redacts BWC recordings for public records requests?

Where should news media requests for BWC recordings be sent?

What is the purpose of an administrative interview conducted by a supervisor in a Sheriff's Office?

When can sworn personnel deactivate the recording capability of a BWC?

What is the responsibility of sworn personnel regarding BWC recordings?

What should sworn personnel do if their BWC is not charging or uploading correctly?

What information should be included in the categorization of BWC recordings?

What is the purpose of the RMS integration?

Who is responsible for correcting the categorization of BWC recordings if automated tagging does not work?

What should sworn personnel do if their Signal Sidearm is damaged or not properly activating their BWC?

What is required for sworn personnel to upload recordings to the Digital Evidence Management System?

What should sworn personnel do if their vehicle is not properly activating their BWC?

When are sworn personnel authorized to record inside a courtroom?

What is the main reason sworn personnel should avoid recording law enforcement sensitive tactics?

When can sworn personnel cease recording prior to clearing the call?

In what situation may a sworn personnel manually deactivate their BWC recording?

Who can request to cease recording by a sworn personnel?

What is the primary purpose of a BWC?

When can sworn personnel record inside a facility owned by the local, state, or federal government?

What is the purpose of supervisory approval to discontinue active BWC recording?

Why may sworn personnel need to deactivate their BWC recording when interviewing a witness or suspect?

What is the purpose of recording law enforcement activities using a BWC?

What is the responsibility of sworn personnel regarding the BWC category?

When is a property report for the BWC recording required?

What is the purpose of the 'Confidential' classification tag?

What is the responsibility of the BWCSA regarding the Digital Evidence Management System?

What is the purpose of the monthly Compliance Review performed by supervisors?

What is the responsibility of sworn personnel regarding BWC recordings and court testimony?

What is the role of the BWCSA in facilitating public records requests?

What is the purpose of the BWCSA's periodic audit of stored BWC recordings?

What is the role of the BWCSA in facilitating evidentiary requests?

What is the responsibility of supervisors regarding BWC videos?

A BWC recording may be categorized into more than one category.

A BWC in Buffering Mode is actively recording audio and video data.

Metadata includes information such as the date and time a recording was captured.

Mute Mode disables both audio and video recording.

Official Law Enforcement Activity includes casual interactions with the public, such as exchanging pleasantries.

Non-Evidentiary Recordings are always retained for the same period as Evidentiary Recordings.

A Compliance Review involves a supervisor reviewing BWC recordings for functionality and categorization.

Deactivating a BWC deletes the recording.

A Docking Station is used to upload recordings to a storage server.

Evidentiary Recordings are stored in a cloud-based storage server.

The Sheriff’s Office is committed to ensuring the citizens of Hillsborough County receive the best possible law enforcement service and protection.

BWC recordings are only used for training and transparency of law enforcement activity.

A BWC can capture everything sworn personnel see, hear, or sense, or what their knowledge and experience convey to them.

Florida Statute, Chapter 934, applies to BWC recordings made by law enforcement agencies that elect to use body cameras.

BWC recordings may be used as standalone evidence in administrative and/or criminal review of events.

Active Recording is a BWC mode where a BWC is not recording a live audio and video feed.

Automatic Activation triggers are limited to vehicle triggers only.

BWC systems are assigned to all Sheriff’s Office personnel.

All personnel assigned to a specialty team are required to wear their BWC at all times when acting as a member of the team.

Detectives are required to wear their BWC while conducting an interview.

Sworn personnel are required to notify their direct supervisor immediately if their BWC is damaged or not operating correctly.

Sworn personnel are required to wear their BWC at all times while on-duty or off-duty.

The Q.Watch Me feature in Axon Body 4 is a one-way communication system.

Sworn personnel are required to ensure their BWC is in buffering mode at the start of each shift or assignment.

Sworn personnel are not required to wear their BWC while participating in agency-approved training.

Detectives are required to wear their BWC while at an active crime scene.

Sworn personnel are permitted to power off their BWC inside any facility owned by the local, state, or federal government.

Sworn personnel are required to wear a specific type of mount while wearing a Class A, Class B, Street Crimes uniform, or training uniform.

Automatic activation triggers can replace manual activation in all circumstances.

Sworn personnel can inform subjects when they are being recorded during an official law enforcement activity only if the subject's consent is required.

Sworn personnel are required to receive training regarding the operation of the BWC equipment and Sheriff’s Office policies and procedures.

Sworn personnel should immediately notify their direct supervisor if they fail to activate their BWC or fail to record an entire event.

Sworn personnel can use their BWC to record privileged communications, such as attorney/client or doctor/patient conversations.

Sworn personnel should annotate the reason for utilizing the mute feature prior to placing their BWC in mute mode.

Sworn personnel can turn off their BWC when they are inside their personal residence.

Sworn personnel should activate their BWC during official law enforcement activities, such as when interacting with the public.

Sworn personnel should ensure their BWC remains in buffering mode only when they are involved in official law enforcement activities.

Sworn personnel who fail to activate their BWC or fail to record an entire event should destroy the recording.

Sworn personnel should manually activate their BWC during an official law enforcement activity.

The BWCSA is responsible for ensuring that all BWC recordings are properly categorized.

Supervisors will perform a quarterly Compliance Review of all BWC videos for all sworn personnel assigned to their squad.

Sworn personnel who originate a General Offense Report or Street Check shall indicate in their report that there are no BWC recordings related to the event.

The BWCSA is responsible for maintaining a centrally managed account inventory of BWC equipment and software.

Sworn personnel are not permitted to review BWC recordings before writing a report or providing a statement regarding any event arising within the scope of their official duties.

The BWCSA facilitates obtaining, reviewing, sharing, and redacting for fulfillment of public records requests.

Supervisors will review all BWC recordings for all sworn personnel assigned to their squad during the Compliance Review.

The BWCSA audits stored BWC recordings to ensure that they are being appropriately retained and that only authorized users are accessing the data for legitimate purposes.

Sworn personnel whose BWC captures video of undercover sworn personnel and/or confidential sources are not responsible for ensuring that the classification tag “Confidential” is used.

Supervisors may request an exception to the number of video reviews that must be completed monthly if their personnel are on a leave of absence for a period of 7 days or longer.

Supervisors are required to conduct video reviews related to personnel who are on a leave of absence or in an 'Other Than Full Duty' status.

Supervisors may review BWC recordings for the sole purpose of searching for violations of Sheriff's Office policy not related to a specific complaint or incident.

The Professional Standards Bureau does not conduct periodic reviews of BWC recordings.

Requests for BWC recordings from the Office of the State Attorney are processed through the Sheriff's Office Records Section via email.

Sworn personnel may release BWC recordings directly to the public.

News media requests for BWC recordings are accepted by the Sheriff's Office Public Affairs Office.

The BWC Unit does not obtain and review BWC recordings for public records requests.

Supervisors have 30 days to review BWC recordings of all sworn personnel involved in certain incidents.

Supervisors are not required to physically inspect the BWC system to ensure it is functional and operating normally.

Sworn personnel are authorized to record inside a courtroom without handling an official law enforcement matter.

Sworn personnel may record a conversation of other law enforcement personnel or Sheriff's Office employee without their knowledge or not related to an official law enforcement activity.

Sworn personnel are allowed to record undercover law enforcement officers or confidential informants.

A BWC recording can be deactivated if a citizen in a situation where a citizen has a reasonable expectation of privacy requests to cease recording.

Sworn personnel are not allowed to record any personal activity or personal conversation not related to an official law enforcement activity.

A BWC recording can be deactivated if there is a reasonable belief that the remainder of the event will result in a non-evidentiary recording.

Sworn personnel are allowed to record court-related matters including conversations with attorneys, pre-filing conferences, depositions, trial preparation, or any activity within a courtroom.

A BWC recording can be deactivated when sworn personnel are engaged in, or about to engage in, an action related to confidential investigative techniques or other confidential information.

Sworn personnel are allowed to record any conversation or activity while inside a facility owned by the local, state, or federal government, including law enforcement facilities, or a hospital/medical facility.

Sworn personnel are allowed to record law enforcement sensitive tactics or discussions.

Supervisors must review BWC recordings of Takedown incidents.

Sworn personnel can upload recordings at any location with a internet connection.

Sworn personnel are responsible for documenting their actions in an email to the Sheriff's Office BWC email address when they receive a replacement BWC.

The BWC will automatically establish an encrypted connection to upload recordings when placed in an agency-issued docking station.

Sworn personnel can only use Sheriff's Office approved equipment and methods to charge and review BWC recordings.

RMS integration will automatically categorize most BWC recordings.

Sworn personnel are responsible for confirming that all BWC recordings include necessary data, such as their name, date and time, and call number.

Sworn personnel can manually activate their BWC when they determine it is not charging or uploading correctly.

Sworn personnel who drive their Sheriff's Office issued vehicle home after their shift are required to charge their BWC at the district office.

Sworn personnel must review BWC recordings and ensure that they are assigned to the correct category in the Digital Evidence Management System.

The Public Affairs Office may request the assistance of the Legal Division for redaction of BWC recordings.

A supervisor can access a BWC recording of their direct subordinate only for the purpose of an administrative investigation.

The Professional Standards Bureau may access and utilize BWC recordings for training purposes.

BWC recordings related to a criminal investigation are retained for 90 days.

The BWCSA periodically audits stored BWC recordings to ensure they are being appropriately retained and only authorized users are accessing the data for legitimate purposes.

Livestreaming of a BWC is authorized under any circumstance.

The Training Division may access and utilize BWC recordings for training purposes at any time.

Sheriff's Office personnel may retain, copy, record, photograph, share, distribute, publish, tamper, alter, or delete a BWC recording without authorization.

BWC recordings of non-evidentiary events are retained for a minimum of one year.

Sworn personnel may categorize a BWC recording as 'Private' without notifying their supervisor.