Cameras in county buildings and the jail
Bell County has bought camera systems for the Justice Center, the Temple Annex, the Juvenile Justice Center and the Central Jail, from four different vendors, over nine years. The two most recent appear on agendas with no recorded outcome.
At a glance
- Temple Annex
- 5 June 2017, surveillance hardware and software from Novy, Inc. for $19,475.76, bought for the Temple Annex and, in the item's own words, to support future county surveillance needs. Approved unanimously as Minute Order #219/17 [1]
- Justice Center
- 5 November 2018, video surveillance cameras from Knight Security Systems for $60,000.00 including cabling, hardware and services, on a state information resources contract. Approved unanimously as Minute Order #518/18 [2]
- Juvenile Justice Center
- 18 April 2022, on the agenda: a surveillance system from Stanley Security on a Sourcewell cooperative contract [3]
- Central Jail
- 15 December 2025, on the consent agenda: surveillance cameras and licenses from B&H Photo, not to exceed $150,000, on an OMNIA cooperative contract [4]
- Evidence and jail video storage
- 20 June 2022, on the agenda: a storage array for $453,895.88 on a state contract, for prosecution and criminal investigation digital evidence and jail minimum security surveillance media [5]
How it happened
- Procurement
Cameras for the Temple Annex, and for whatever came next
The Court approves $19,475.76 of surveillance hardware and software from Novy, Inc. The item says it is for the Temple Annex and to support future county surveillance needs. [1]
- Procurement
The Justice Center
$60,000.00 of video surveillance cameras from Knight Security Systems, a state information resources vendor, including cabling, hardware and services. Approved unanimously. [2]
- Procurement
Somewhere to keep it
A $453,895.88 storage array appears on the agenda, for prosecution and criminal investigation digital evidence and jail minimum security surveillance media. No published minutes. [5]
- Procurement
The Central Jail
The consent agenda carries a quote for surveillance cameras and licenses for the county's Central Jail, not to exceed $150,000, bought through a purchasing cooperative. No published minutes. [4]
Bell County’s building cameras were bought one building at a time, from a different vendor each time, and the items are short.
In June 2017 the Court approved $19,475.76 of surveillance hardware and software for the Temple Annex, an item that also says the purchase is to support future county surveillance needs. In November 2018 it approved $60,000.00 of video surveillance cameras at the Justice Center. Both passed unanimously, and the minutes record no discussion beyond the motion.
After that the record thins. In April 2022 a surveillance system for the Juvenile Justice Center appears on the agenda. In June 2022 a $453,895.88 storage array appears, described in a single sentence as holding both prosecution and criminal investigation digital evidence and jail minimum security surveillance media. In December 2025 the consent agenda carries cameras and licenses for the Central Jail, not to exceed $150,000. For none of those three did the county publish minutes, so none of them is recorded here as a decision.
Every one of the later purchases went through a purchasing cooperative, which under Texas law satisfies the requirement to seek competitive bids. What that means in practice is that the county’s building camera estate was assembled without a single public bid notice describing it.
No item in the county’s record says how many cameras any of these systems has, which rooms or approaches they watch, or how long the footage is kept.
What we do not know
- How many cameras each of these systems has, and which spaces they cover.
- Whether any of them cover areas the public uses, such as lobbies, hallways and parking lots.
- How long the recordings are kept, and who may review them.
- Whether the Juvenile Justice Center and Central Jail purchases were approved.
- What else is held on the $453,895.88 evidence array, and under what retention schedule.
What you can do
Show up
Systems like this one are approved by boards, councils and committees that meet in public. We have confirmed where each of them meets in Bell County and how public comment works there.
How to show up in Bell County →Protect yourself
Practical steps to shrink your personal data trail. Our guides publish at launch; until then, EFF's Surveillance Self-Defense is the best starting point.
Surveillance Self-Defense →Sources
- 1. Bell County Commissioners Court, minutes, 5 June 2017, Minute Order · Meeting record · · accessed
- 2. Bell County Commissioners Court, minutes, 5 November 2018, Minute Order · Meeting record · · accessed
- 3. Bell County Commissioners Court, agenda, 18 April 2022, item 9 · Meeting record · · accessed
- 4. Bell County Commissioners Court, agenda, 15 December 2025, consent item 3.h · Meeting record · · accessed
- 5. Bell County Commissioners Court, agenda, 20 June 2022, item 5 · Meeting record · · accessed
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