Howard County Police Department’s Implementation of Body Worn Cameras

August 26th, 2022

Beginning Monday, Aug. 29, all Howard County Police Department School Resource Officers (SROs) and patrol officers will wear body worn cameras, in alignment with the newly implemented Howard County Police Department (HCPD) Body Worn Camera (BWC) program that went into effect Aug. 15.

In June 2021, the Howard County Board of Education approved a revised SRO Memorandum of Understanding with the HCPD, which included planning for BWC program implementation. Utilization of BWCs by SROs will be in compliance with all applicable HCPD policies, including the HCPD BWC Policy.

When responding to incidents in HCPSS schools, SROs will:

• Only activate the camera when necessary for law enforcement purposes. BWCs will not be activated during routine, daily interactions with students or staff.
• To the extent possible, attempt to avoid recording staff and persons other than the involved parties.
• To the extent possible, attempt to avoid recording educational activities.

SROs are HCPD employees, and their staffing numbers are based on the police department’s budget and staffing allocations. There are currently 13 SRO officers—one in each of the 12 HCPSS high schools and one at the Homewood Center. More information about the HCPD BWC program, including answers to frequently asked questions and BWC Policy is available on the HCPD website.

Please contact the HCPSS Office of School Safety & Security at 410-313-6840 or safety@hcpss.org with any questions.