{"id":415649,"date":"2026-10-01T12:06:09","date_gmt":"2026-10-01T12:06:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/415649\/"},"modified":"2026-10-01T12:06:09","modified_gmt":"2026-10-01T12:06:09","slug":"beyond-the-dashcam-fhp-begins-equipping-troopers-with-body-cameras","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/415649\/","title":{"rendered":"Beyond the dashcam: FHP begins equipping troopers with body cameras"},"content":{"rendered":"

PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. (CBS12) \u2014 Florida Highway Patrol (FHP<\/a>) troopers are getting body cameras that can capture what their cruisers\u2019 cameras cannot: encounters that move away from the vehicle.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou could hear what was going on. You just couldn’t see what was going on,\u201d said William Smith, president of the FHP chapter of the Florida Police Benevolent Association.<\/p>\n

Motorcycle troopers, including Smith, already use body cameras. The broader rollout will equip troopers working in patrol cars, which have relied on vehicle-mounted cameras and separate microphones to document encounters.<\/p>\n

Installation in the Lake Worth area is scheduled to begin in October, Smith said. Troop L serves Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River, Okeechobee and Broward counties.<\/p>\n

The expansion came through an equipment replacement, rather than a new legislative requirement.<\/p>\n

Smith said FHP\u2019s existing camera lease was ending, prompting the agency to seek a replacement system. Motorola Solutions\u2019 body camera provided the audio capability the agency needed.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt just so happens the Motorola system came with a body camera. It’s not something they were seeking,\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n

A bill that would have required FHP body cameras failed earlier this year. Senate Bill 616<\/a>, sponsored by Sen. Carlos Guillermo Smith, D-Orlando, would have required cameras during specified duties and provided $2 million for equipment, training and storage. It died in the Senate Transportation Committee on March 13. The proposed funding does not establish the cost of the current rollout.<\/p>\n

The additional camera view comes as troopers\u2019 assignments extend beyond highway enforcement. In July, cellphone video captured FHP<\/a> assisting federal immigration agents during an operation outside a Lake Worth Beach bakery.<\/p>\n

For Rick Morris, a former West Palm Beach police deputy chief who now directs the Criminal Justice Institute at Palm Beach State College, the recordings offer a valuable tool for investigating what happened.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe evidentiary value of a body camera is tremendous,\u201d Morris said. \u201cYou know, you catch real time evidence statements, real time actions.\u201d<\/p>\n

Morris said footage was especially useful when reviewing police shootings, allowing investigators to examine actions taken within seconds. He cautioned that a camera\u2019s angle can limit what it captures.<\/p>\n

Smith said the recordings also benefit troopers facing disputed accounts of an encounter.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt also helps protect the officer against complaints that are not true,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

See also: Toddler drowns in pond near family home in Martin County<\/a><\/p>\n

The rollout is underway while the recording policy is being updated. Smith said existing body camera rules were tailored to motorcycle units, and the union is reviewing proposed changes for broader use.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe policy should have been done before the implementation,\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n

The union plans to return its recommendations to FHP by Oct. 8, Smith said. The agency would then determine how to proceed with the changes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. (CBS12) \u2014 Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) troopers are getting body cameras that can capture…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":415650,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[171,173,172],"class_list":["post-415649","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-port-st-lucie","tag-port-st-lucie","tag-port-st-lucie-headlines","tag-port-st-lucie-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/415649","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=415649"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/415649\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/415650"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=415649"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=415649"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=415649"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}