Expand the Orange County Sheriff's Department Body Worn Camera program to provide our Mutual Aid and Reserve Bureaus 200 additional body cameras and hardware with 150 licenses.

Orange County Sheriff’s Department BJA Grant Proposal Abstract

The Orange County (OC) Sheriff’s Department, located in Southern California, is among the largest in the nation, providing exemplary law enforcement services focused on a collaborative, dedicated, and innovative approach to public safety. The more than 3,800 sworn and professional staff, along with more than 800 reserves and volunteer personnel, are committed to serving the needs of Orange County daily. The OC Sheriff’s Department is comprised of five organizational Commands with 23 divisions that provide services including but not limited to land, air, and sea-based patrol, custody operations, investigative services, emergency management, coroner services, forensics, and specialty operations. The OC Sheriff’s Department serves approximately 800,000 residents in 13 contract cities and unincorporated areas and provides countywide services for the County’s mass transit system, harbors, and the John Wayne Airport. In addition, Orange County is home to famous theme parks, sports teams, 

and concert venues in the United States, making it a top vacation destination for people worldwide. 

In October of 2021, the OC Sheriff’s Department launched its first body-worn camera program, supplying its patrol and investigative divisions with the latest body camera technology from Axon. Over 1,000 Axon 3 body cameras have been deployed to all sergeants, deputies, investigators, special officers, and community service officers working in public-facing assignments. During the summer of 2022, 330 new Axon Fleet 3 In-Car Video (ICV) systems will be installed, replacing a legacy Patrol Video System (PVS), which had been in service for over three decades in its patrol vehicles. In less than eight months, the Department has accrued approximately 180,000 pieces of video evidence in its cloud-based Digital Evidence Management System (DEMS). In addition, it is recording an average of 9,500 hours of video a month, which will substantially increase with the deployment of the ICV system.
 

If awarded this grant opportunity, the OC Sheriff’s Department would expand its body-worn camera program to provide our Mutual Aid and Reserve Bureaus with 200 additional Axon Body 3 cameras and hardware with 150 licenses to support their mission. Uniformed Reserve Deputies Sheriffs perform as the face of the Department during many events and incidents, and providing them with body-worn cameras promotes accountability, enhances public trust, and helps deter criminal activity and uncooperative behavior during police-public interactions. The Orange County Sheriff’s Department looks forward to expanding its body-worn camera program and continuing its collaboration with associated agencies and stakeholders.