Senate Judiciary amends House Bill 11‑23 to allow limited body‑worn camera use in strip searches, sends to Appropriations

Senate Judiciary Committee sponsors advanced an amended version of House Bill 11‑23 on April 22, moving the measure to the Appropriations Committee after adopting a series of technical and policy amendments designed to allow controlled use of body‑worn camera (BWC) footage during strip‑searches in jails.

The amendments — adopted without objection in a package labeled L19 through L23 — reconcile new language with existing statutes, clarify ‘‘intake’’ versus intra‑facility movement, and specify that BWCs may be used to record strip searches subject to written agency policy and tagging features coordinated with vendors. Sponsor Senator Weissman said the changes reflect sheriff input and federal standards.

"We do need to route, for small cash fund reasons to the appropes committee and then the floor after that," Senator Weissman said while moving the bill as amended. He also framed the changes as a response to survivor testimony: "You still have rights. You still have basic human dignity that should be upheld."

Sponsor Senator Amabile, who the committee recognized for co‑sponsoring the amendment package, said the bill is intended to address repeated harms survivors described in prior testimony. "I was so taken aback by her discussing that as if, of course, that's just a thing that happens," Amabile said, recounting conversations that motivated the legislation.

Key changes the committee adopted include:
- Clarifying that ‘‘intake’’ refers to admission into custody rather than movement within a facility and adjusting statutory cross‑references to align with 16‑3‑4‑5 and federal guidance;
- Explicitly permitting body‑worn camera footage to be used for strip‑search recording while requiring written policies governing recording, access and tagging;
- Adding a duty for sheriffs to coordinate with vendors, including use of tagging features so agencies can classify recordings (for example, tagging footage as a strip search);
- Technical definition clean‑ups to ensure consistency across municipal and county detention facilities.

Supporters told the committee the amendments were the result of extensive stakeholder discussions, including conversations with sheriffs to address operational concerns. Senator Weissman said the BWC approach was selected because the technology is widespread in law enforcement and offers access‑control and tagging capabilities.

Miss Jensen polled the committee on the motion to refer HB 11‑23 as amended to Appropriations. Recorded votes were: Carson (No); Doherty (Yes); Henrikson (Yes); Wallace (Yes); Zamora Wilson (No); Weisman (Yes); Mister Chair (Aye). The motion passed, 5–2.

Next steps: HB 11‑23 will go to the Appropriations Committee for fiscal and cash‑fund review before a floor vote.