Bill
SB 1046
Allows correctional officers to lawfully record oral communications with body-worn cameras if conditions are met, with statewide model policies and pre-event buffering.
Status snapshot
- Title: Correctional Officers – Body‑Worn Digital Recording Devices
- Introduced: January 31, 2025
- Hearing scheduled: April 2, 2025 at 1:00 p.m.
- Sponsor(s): Senators McKay and Smith (Maryland)
- Bill type: Emergency measure (would take effect on enactment)
- Fiscal note: Not expected to materially affect State or local finances
Purpose and intent
- Authorize correctional officers to lawfully intercept oral communications using body‑worn digital recording devices (BWCs) or electronic control devices (when those devices are capable of recording video and oral communications) in the course of their regular duties, subject to specified requirements and safeguards.
- Require statewide development and publication of a model BWC policy for correctional facilities and require facility managers to adopt consistent written policies.
Key provisions
1. Lawful interception conditions
- A correctional officer may intercept an oral communication with a BWC or qualifying electronic control device only if:
- the officer is in uniform or prominently displaying badge/insignia;
- the officer is making reasonable efforts to conform to applicable standards;
- the officer is a party to the oral communication;
- the officer notifies the individual that they are being recorded “as soon as practicable,” unless unsafe, impractical, or impossible; and
- the interception is part of a videotape or digital recording.
- Failure to notify a person who joins a conversation in progress does not automatically exclude admissibility if proper notification had already been given to others.
Model policy and facility policies
Technical and labor rules
Definitions and context
- “Body‑worn digital recording device” — a device worn on an officer that can record video and intercept oral communications.
- “Electronic control device” — a portable weapon designed to discharge electrical current (defined elsewhere in statute); included only if capable of recording video and oral communications.
- The bill amends the State’s wiretap/interception framework to make these specific interceptions lawful when the listed conditions are met (Maryland is a two‑party consent state by default).
Who would be affected
- Correctional officers and correctional facilities (state and local facilities covered by the Correctional Services Article); incarcerated individuals, visitors, and other persons interacting with correctional staff; MPTSC and the Secretary of Public Safety and Correctional Services; collective bargaining parties for correctional staff; courts (evidence admissibility).
Procedural / timeline highlights
- MPTSC policy deadline: January 1, 2026.
- Emergency measure: if enacted, the law would take effect immediately upon enactment.
- Fiscal note indicates no material State or local fiscal impact anticipated.
Potential legal and practical impacts
- Expands existing law‑enforcement recording exceptions to explicitly include correctional officers under defined conditions, reducing the legal risk of interception charges when officers comply with policy requirements.
- Requires uniform policy standards and technical features (pre‑event buffering), which may affect procurement, training, data storage, and privacy practices within facilities.
- Limits the ability of labor agreements to restrict adoption of BWC policies established under this law.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
Sign in to ask a question.
