Hollywood Police Get Body Worn Cameras: The City Has Been Awarded $1.7 Million To Launch The Program

The Hollywood Police Department is one of the few Departments across the State that doesn’t have Officer Body-Worn Cameras, but thanks to some Federal Funding, Cameras will be coming to this Department.

Congresswoman Frederica Wilson stopped by the Hollywood Commission Chambers recently to present the Funding In-Person. The Department is now getting $1.7 Million in Federal Funding for some long overdue Equipment which are 250 Body-Worn Cameras.

As part of the $1.5 Trillion Omnibus Spending Bill signed by President Biden, Funding for this Program was Co-Sponsored by Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Congresswoman Frederica Wilson as part of their 2022 Community Project Funding Appropriation Requests.

“In recent years, we’ve seen how the bonds of trust between the Public and Law Enforcement have become frayed across the Country. To heal those broken bonds, we must take steps to address this disconnect and put in place initiatives that seek to rectify them,” said Congresswoman Wilson. “Body-Worn Cameras are here to protect everybody – that means both our Residents and the Police alike. I’m proud to have delivered for the City of Hollywood and to have secured $1.7 Million for Body-Worn Cameras to the Hollywood Police Department’s Law Enforcement Officers.”

“Thanks to the efforts by Congresswoman Wasserman Schultz and Wilson, the City will now be able to implement a BWC (Body Worn Camera) Program that is expected to provide enhanced transparency between Police Officers and the Public and with quicker resolution to cases via this additional form of Evidence,” says Hollywood Mayor Josh Levy.

Through this Funding, in the first year, the Department is expected to purchase 250 BWC’s and the additional necessary Hardware, Software and Infrastructure to launch the Program. Four (4) new Staff Members, including a Sworn Sergeant and three Civilian Digital Evidence Specialists will be hired to Administer the Program. Full Deployment, Ongoing Operational and Administration Costs associated with the Program is estimated at approximately $572,000 Annually, which will be Funded through the City’s Budget.

“As an Agency, we are committed to exploring Technology that will bring forth the High-Quality Public Service expected of Police Officers and Convey a sense of Procedural Justice that our Community expects and our Mission States,” says Hollywood Police Chief Chris O’Brien. “The BWC will be an additional set of eyes on the scene that can then later be used in training sessions as an uncensored look at a response to unfolding events.”

The Public’s perception and trust in Law Enforcement is a crucial component in reducing Social and Racial Inequality within Communities. In 2014, a National Institute of Justice Study found that Body-Worn Cameras increase positive interactions and make people feel safer. Increasingly, Law Enforcement Agencies across the Country and the World have incorporated Body-Worn Cameras as essential tools to enhance Safety, Trust and improve interactions between the Public and Police Officers.