Sheriff Tony: Harnessing Technology to Strengthen Public Safety in Broward County
A Message from Sheriff Gregory Tony:
Technology plays a crucial role in safeguarding our community. To stay ahead, the Broward Sheriff’s Office (BSO) continuously adopts innovative technological solutions to deliver the highest level of public safety services to Broward County.
A recent example is the arrest of 12 students by our Threat Management Unit (TMU) at the start of the school year for making online threats. Using real-time social media monitoring, the TMU swiftly identified, investigated and neutralized the threats, demonstrating the effectiveness of their advanced systems.
While this illustrates how technology enhances our ability to protect the community, BSO’s proactive and evolving use of technology extends well beyond threat detection and response—it’s a pivotal part of our organizational strategy. We consistently research and implement advanced tools to strengthen our overall response capabilities and safeguard our county. A few examples are highlighted below.
- The BSO Digital Forensics Unit has significantly boosted its technological capabilities by increasing storage capacity and accelerating data transfer, which speeds up processing time and allows our investigators to examine multiple devices simultaneously. These upgrades, alongside the unit’s expansion, have resulted in substantial time savings, improved efficiency and successful results in solving cases with critical digital information.
- The BSO Training Division is testing cutting-edge virtual reality (VR) systems to further augment our law enforcement training. This advanced technology allows for simultaneous training capabilities utilizing diverse scenarios, from de-escalation tactics to active shooter responses. It also supports the integration of detailed building plans, allowing deputies to train in specific environments, such as schools or courthouses. These VR systems will save time and reduce costs by allowing more frequent and efficient training sessions, with the added benefit of video review for post-training analysis. A significant portion of the funding for these systems was secured through grants, and we anticipate rolling out introductory training in early 2025.
- The BSO Real Time Crime Center (RTCC) has incorporated new technology, including facial recognition and license plate reader software, to investigate, solve and prevent crimes. Recent technology upgrades have enhanced BSO’s ability to identify vehicles and link them to suspects, victims or crimes and better utilize mobile cameras strategically deployed in crime hotspots.
- The BSO Department of Fire Rescue and Emergency Services has adopted the GlideScope, an advanced tool that uses video to help guide intubation. This technology provides our firefighter/paramedics with a clear view of a patient’s airway, significantly improving the success of securing an airway on the first attempt, which can be lifesaving in critical situations. As of today, we have 22 GlideScopes in use across the county.
- The BSO Crime Lab has made significant technological improvements to its investigative capabilities. One such advancement is Y-STR technology, which isolates DNA to identify suspects. It also enables familial searching within the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), providing leads in cases where traditional DNA analysis may fall short. The Crime Lab also uses the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN), a national database that allows us to compare fired cartridge cases and identify potential connections to other crimes.
As public safety needs evolve, BSO remains dedicated to implementing cutting-edge technologies that enhance our ability to identify, track, monitor and prevent crime. We will continue to expand our use of innovative tools to uphold our commitment to excellence in service.
Sheriff Gregory Tony
Service Equals Reward
Certain Broward cities like Coconut Creek, Hallandale Beach, Pembroke Pines, Sunrise, Plantation, Davie, Margate, Miramar, Lauderhill, Lighthouse Point, and Coral Springs maintain their police departments; however, BSO does provide communications and dispatch services to the following cities: Central Broward, Cooper City, Dania Beach, Deerfield Beach, Ft Lauderdale-Hollywood Int’l Airport, Lauderdale-By-The-Sea, Lauderdale Lakes, North Lauderdale, Oakland Park, Parkland, West Park, Pompano Beach, Port Everglades, Tamarac, Weston, and unincorporated West Broward.
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