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Richland County approves $60,540 purchase for courtroom audio and AI-assisted transcription
Summary
The board approved replacement audio systems and an optional AI-assisted real-time transcription service for two courtrooms; officials said the technology could cut manual transcript preparation by about half though human review remains required.
Richland County commissioners on March 10 voted to buy upgraded courtroom audio and recording equipment and to add a real-time transcription system to improve court recordings and transcripts. The motion to fund the equipment from capital was moved, seconded and carried unanimously.
The presentation, led by Chad Guined of the juvenile court, said the system would upgrade audio in Courtroom One and Courtroom Two and offer a real-time transcription service that his office expects could reduce manual transcript preparation time by roughly 50% (the presenter described an example in which a single trial transcript that took 32 days to type could be cut in half). Guined said the system still requires human verification and sign-off to confirm transcript accuracy.
Commissioners asked about the technology and recurring costs. Guined described optional annual support and a SAS reinstatement fee; the transcript lists courtroom-two annual support at $815 and courtroom-one at $978 as examples of recurring fees. Commissioners raised concerns about licensing and the possibility of periodic update or renewal costs; the presenter said annual support is optional and the county can defer upgrades for several years if it chooses. One commissioner noted the vendor offered a modest discount on an earlier quote.
The chair recorded the purchase total for both courtrooms as "$60,54057" as read aloud during the vote and the board approved the procurement. The county will continue to require staff review of AI-produced transcripts and human sign-off before records are finalized.
The board moved on to other business after the vote. The installation timeline and vendor contract specifics were not finalized on the record; procurement and capital accounting staff will record the final contract details.
