Livestreaming body cameras: 5 things to know about PBSO's cutting-edge new tech

WEST PALM BEACH — The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office is the first agency in the area to equip its force with body cameras that automatically turn on when deputies draw their weapons and let their supervisors watch the events unfold in real time.

Police-worn body cameras are acclaimed for spotlighting bad behavior, but Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said PBSO's livestreaming ones can help stop it in the act. The sheriff's office outfitted 25 deputies with the cameras Wednesday and will continue rolling them out in 25-deputy increments throughout the year, Bradshaw said Thursday.

In an interview first broadcast by WPTV NewsChannel 5 this month, the sheriff said he expects all 1,600 deputies to have them by fall. Here are five things to know about the Axon Body 3, PBSO's latest high-tech tool.

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I have an iPhone. Can I watch the livestream?

No. Only sheriff's office supervisors can, Bradshaw said.

They'll watch either from a laptop or mobile device — anywhere from on the road, to inside the agency's command bus or in their Real Time Crime or Fusion centers, two security hubs used to track threats and monitor crime.

Supervisors can tap into deputies' livestreams as a critical incident unfolds, or to investigate accusations of misbehavior, Bradshaw said. It's up to the supervisors' discretion, but he said it'll most often be used for "critical incidents." Supervisors will also choose recordings at random to review throughout the month.

Do deputies know when they're being watched?

Yes. Deputies will feel their body cameras vibrate when someone activates the livestream, and an LED indicator light will begin to flash purple. Before supervisors activate the livestream remotely, Bradshaw said they'll ask the deputies to do it themselves.

Deputies have some control over when their cameras can and cannot begin livestreaming. The tech is engineered to begin broadcasting only if it's already recording, which deputies control with the push of a button. This is to prevent livestreaming during inopportune moments, like bathroom breaks, according to Axon, the camera's Seattle-based maker.

Axon debuted the livestreaming body camera in 2019 with the Cincinnati Police Department, and it's since been adopted by police departments in Orlando and Fort Lauderdale.

What does the body camera capture?

It offers a chest-level view from the officer's perspective, filmed in about as high resolution as a standard television. Audio is included, unless the deputy chooses to manually mute it.

The camera begins recording as soon as deputies double-tap the large button in its center, or when they draw their weapons or activate their emergency lights. It also retains the footage from a few moments earlier to provide more context. Agencies can determine the length of this setting — from 30 seconds to two minutes before the camera starts recording, and whether that footage includes sound.

PBSO has chosen to make its cameras capture 30 seconds prior, no sound included.

Can the public see the footage?

Not immediately. Police chiefs and mayors across the country have made ad hoc decisions to release videos of some high-profile incidents, like the shooting of Tyre Nichols in Memphis, quickly — but this isn't always the case. In Florida, it's up to each law-enforcement agency to decide how long to retain body-camera footage and under what circumstances to release it, depending on whether they believe it has evidentiary value.

Bradshaw said he expects the sheriff's office to be inundated with public records requests once the body cameras hit the streets. Part of the delay in getting the cameras was ensuring he had enough staff to handle the requests, he said. He said he's hopeful the turnaround time for requests will be between three to five days.

"I know how the news media is," Bradshaw said Thursday. "They want it like yesterday, OK? It doesn't work like that."

Video taken inside a person's home or hospital room, and of officers killed while doing their job, are exempt from records requests.

Do body cameras make people behave differently?

The research is mixed. Advocates for body cameras have long championed the tool's tempering effect on police and civilians, but an 18-month study of more than 2,000 police officers in Washington found that officers equipped with cameras used force at about the same rate as those without them.

A review of body-worn camera research by the Center for Evidence-Based Crime Policy at George Mason University found that cameras haven't had significant or consistent effects on either officer and citizen behavior, or on citizens’ views of police. Another study in 2016 found that complaints against police dropped 93% in a handful of communities after cameras were introduced.

Some researchers have looked into whether body cameras can hurt police by making them second-guess themselves in situations that warrant decisive force. The research is limited, and so far hasn't found evidence to support the fear.

Hannah Phillips is a journalist covering public safety and criminal justice at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach her at hphillips@pbpost.com.