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Approve a 5 year agreement with Axon Enterprise, Inc. for $811,096 to lease a body worn camera system which captures and stores audio and video data digitally and includes hardware, software applications, installation, training and support, for the term August 1, 2019 through July 31, 2024; Delegate authority to the Chief Information Officer to execute the agreement and any amendments including changes to terms and conditions, scope of services, and modifications to contract limits not to exceed $75,000 annually; and Authorize the Sheriff to execute contract amendments which are technical and administrative in nature and remain within budget appropriations
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Published Notice Required? Yes ____ No _X _
Public Hearing Required? Yes ____ No _X _
DEPARTMENTAL RECOMMENDATION:
The Sheriff recommends that the Board of Supervisors:
1. Approve a 5 year agreement with Axon Enterprise, Inc. for $811,096 to lease a body worn camera system which captures and stores audio and video data digitally and includes hardware, software applications, installation, training and support for the term August 1, 2019 through July 31, 2024;
2. Delegate authority to the Chief Information Officer to execute the agreement and any amendments including changes to terms and conditions, scope of services, and modifications to contract limits not to exceed $75,000; and
3. Authorize the Sheriff to execute contract amendments which are technical and administrative in nature and remain within budget appropriations.
SUMMARY:
Body worn camera systems are the norm in law enforcement and the public expects the accountability and transparency these systems afford. The camera can be worn anywhere on the body and will capture and record real time data securely stored in a data management system for retrieval and review. Implementation of these systems has been shown to improve evidence collection, increase prosecutions, demonstrate patterns of behavior, reduce citizen complaints, assist with internal affair investigations and aid in training.
In July of 2018, the Sheriff’s Office participated in a nationwide Axon Enterprise, Inc’s (Axon) National Field Trial program. Axon supplied law enforcement agencies across the country with body worn cameras for law enforcement officers and provided 12 months of storage and technical support at no cost. The trial was designed to evaluate product in the field. The cameras and storage system worked extremely well for the Sheriff’s Office, providing a viable replacement for our existing body worn camera system.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
The total cost to lease the Axon body-worn system is $811,096. The County will make five installment payments annually during the term of the agreement as enumerated below. The first payment, occurring in FY2019/20, is due after receipt of the equipment and subsequent payments are due annually thereafter. The payments include all primary and supporting hardware and replacements, use of Axon Evidence Data Management System, Axon applications, professional services and 24/7 customer support. Board action will not impact the County General Fund as the Sheriff’s Office FY2019/20 Adopted Budget includes sufficient appropriation for the agreement. The cost associated with preparing the agenda item is nominal and absorbed by the department’s FY2019/20 Adopted Budget.
Year 1 $162,220.04
Year 2 $162,219.16
Year 3 $162,219.16
Year 4 $162,219.16
Year 5 $162,219.16
Total $811,096.68
DISCUSSION:
The decision of whether or not to deploy body worn cameras is no longer a choice. Our society now expects law enforcement officers to provide video proof in administrative and criminal cases. The Sheriff’s Office has utilized body worn camera systems for many years; however, the current system has experienced numerous malfunctions including upload issues due to aging equipment and storage system. In response to these issues, the Sheriff’s Office began researching newer systems and eventually chose to participate in a field trail sponsored by Axon.
The one-year trial proved the durability of this system. The system worked well with minimal camera failures. The product is robust, and the company has an eye to the future with significant product upgrades on the horizon which our agreement will enable us to participate in. Their next camera version, soon to be released, includes cellular connectivity, GPS location services and a longer battery life.
The resulting success of the trial, combined with positive reviews from other agencies and implementation of the system by other agencies, convinced the Sheriff’s Office to contract with Axon. An agreement with Axon has many benefits; including the primary benefit of leasing the system equipment as the County can receive equipment and system upgrades to ensure the system keeps up with technological advancements. Axon will provide full warranty for camera hardware, Axon will repair or replace any camera and provide complete camera inventory replacements after 30 months and at the conclusion of the agreement. Another benefit is the ability to move data storage from our current on premises servers to Axon maintained cloud servers. The Axon servers meet numerous legal and technical certifications required for secure operations. Additional factors that influenced this decision include:
Ø Compatibility with neighboring agencies;
Ø Ability to share information with other users (Law Enforcement agencies and District Attorney’s Office) via an online link to specific files;
Ø Ability to Bluetooth to authorized mobile devices;
Ø Pre-record buffering;
Ø 12+ hour battery life;
Ø Automated uploading via Axon docking stations;
Ø Securely share digital evidence with other agencies or prosecutors without creating copies or requiring the data to leave your agency’s domain of control;
Ø Stores and supports all major digital file types: .mpeg, .doc, .pdf, .jpeg;
Ø Is compatible with Criminal Justice Information Services requirements (CJIS) and able to support the Sheriff’s Office meeting CJIS compliance; and
Ø ISO 27001 compliant information security program.
Furthermore, this agreement is necessary to assist the Sheriff’s Office with complying with the amended section 832.7 of the California Penal Code. Effective July 1, 2019, all body camera images must be made available for public examination under strict timelines. Axon provides redaction software as part of its body worn camera system that will allow Sheriff’s staff to efficiently redact audio recordings and blur images, faces, license plates, and other identifiers. The current system does not have redaction capability.
ALTERNATIVES:
The Board of Supervisors could choose not to approve the agreement; however, this alternative is not recommended as non-approval would require the Sheriff’s Office to again research options for equipment and data storage. Additionally, a large amount of data is currently stored on Axon Enterprise servers and the county would be required to download the data within 90 days if the agreement were not executed.
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
County Counsel has reviewed and approved the agreement as to form. The County Risk Manager approved the insurance provision and related liability limits. County Purchasing identified several existing agreements between Axon and other agencies to leverage this agreement. The Department of Information Technology has reviewed this report and concurs with the Sheriff’s recommendation.
CAO RECOMMENDATION:
APPROVE DEPARTMENTAL RECOMMENDATION