Multiple local agenices looking to increase body-worn camera use

TAMPA, Fla. - The Tampa Police Department and the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office will be getting body cameras in the near future.

The St. Petersburg Police Department is currently conducting a trial run with five body cameras while the Clearwater Police Department says it will be discussing the technology with city councilors during a meeting in July.

Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri is not as eager about adding the technology as other agencies are in the area. Asked about body cameras for his agency, he said he's not convinced they ensure accountability.

"Body cameras, like anything else, are not the end-all-be-all, the silver lining, the thing that's going to prevent it," Gualtieri said during a press conference on June 8th.  "You can have body cameras, you can have citizen review boards, you can have all of these policies and procedures, you can have all these things; unless you have the right culture, then it's all for not."

The Polk and Sarasota County sheriff's offices do not have body cameras either. The Sarasota Police Department says it wants body cameras but it figuring out how to pay for them. The Pasco County Sheriff's Office has been using them since 2015.