Martin Sheriff's Office finally getting body cameras after $10 million county commitment

Lina Ruiz and Mauricio La Plante, Treasure Coast Newspapers
·3 min read

MARTIN COUNTY — The Sheriff’s Office here will be the last on the Treasure Coast to get body cameras after the County Commission unanimously approved spending more than $10 million over the next decade to kickstart the technology program.

The promise to give more than $1 million annually came Tuesday after Sheriff William Snyder made a presentation to commissioners on the benefits and reasons behind outfitting law enforcement personnel with cameras.

St. Lucie County and Indian River County sheriff’s offices already equip their personnel with cameras, he said.

While Snyder came to the meeting to discuss policy — and not specifically to ask for money, he said — commissioners were eager to open the county's wallet.

The Sheriff's Office will get funds immediately to order the first cameras and begin hiring support personnel, including three public-record redaction specialists, a program coordinator and trainer. County staff discussed initially tapping reserves and grant money for the initiative, but it remains unclear how the full bill will be paid.

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Camera testing already underway

The Sheriff's Office has been testing the program since January with 10 cameras, and hopes to have it fully running in about six months, Snyder said.

Sheriff's Capt. Peter Croft said the department plans to initially purchase 266 body cameras.

“The primary driver is public expectation. We have evolved into a day and age of the video,” Snyder told the commission. “The demands of professional law enforcement today really demand a couple of things. … We have to be transparent, and we have to be accountable.”

Studies show use-of-force and citizen complaints decrease when body cameras are utilized, according to Snyder. Cameras also are used as a tool to gather evidence, enhance public trust and decrease civil litigation, he said.

“Your personnel are putting their lives in jeopardy every day, and not giving them the absolute best and the absolute most-appropriate tools, I think, is a shame,” County Commissioner Harold Jenkins told Snyder. “It’s a lot of money, no doubt. But to protect our people that are putting their lives in jeopardy every day, it’s a no-brainer for me.”

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Corrections deputies working in Martin County Jail, however, won't initially be equipped with body cameras because the jail "is loaded with cameras," Snyder said.

Improved technology

Snyder has resisted beginning a body-camera program for years. The technology has not been adequate until now, he said.

Having body cameras, he believes, would have helped catch individual misconduct, such as in the case of former Deputy Steven O'Leary, who made dozens of false arrests in 2018.

"I do suspect it would have made a difference, yes," Snyder said. "I don't know if we'll ever know for sure. I suppose that if a deputy was being extremely devious like he was, then perhaps they could evade, but my sense is that it would have made a difference."

Snyder already is drafting a policy on use of body cameras. For example, deputies would be required to activate cameras if they're approaching a suspicious person, making a traffic stop or arresting somebody.

"I think the broad policy will be anytime they're encountering the public in an enforcement capacity, they'll have the cameras on," Snyder said. "If they're sitting at dinner, and somebody walks up and asks for directions, they don't have to activate the camera."

Deputies who fail to activate cameras appropriately could be disciplined, he said.

Lina Ruiz is TCPalm's watchdog reporter for Martin County. You can reach her at lina.ruiz@tcpalm.com, on Twitter @Lina_Ruiz48 or at 321-501-3845

Mauricio La Plante is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm focusing on Martin County. Follow him on Twitter @mslaplantenews or email him at Mauricio.LaPlante@tcpalm.com.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Martin County to give $10 million to Sheriff's Office for body cameras