COVINGTON, Ga. — Over a year ago, the Newton County Sheriff’s Office’s (NCSO) communications team introduced a new way to send information to the public. NCSO unveiled its new smartphone app that is available for download via the App Store and Google Play.

Caitlin Jett, NCSO’s communication’s officer, headed up the project and is glad to have added this tool.

“The Sheriff’s communication team began discussing the idea of a smartphone app at the end of 2021,” Jett said. “It was through our communication-based research that we noticed surrounding law enforcement agencies had already implemented an app for their agency, and with the knowledge that many individuals have a smartphone, we thought it would be a great communications tool to bring to the Newton County Sheriff’s Office.”

NCSO adopted the idea from other area’s sheriff’s offices already having an app. In fact, NCSO operates its app through the SheriffApp platform, also found at thesheriffapp.com.

In a press release sent to The Covington News and published on June 21, 2022, OCV vice president Kevin Cummings said, “Over 80 percent of people in the United States own and use smartphones as their primary means of communication.”

Prior to the app’s adoption, NCSO primarily relied on social media outlets and other platforms to relay information. Now, with the app, users can get notified more straightforwardly.

“Unlike traditional forms of communication, the app allows for us to send a direct notification to the community without going through a third party, such as Facebook or Nextdoor,” Jett said. “Since a majority of the community has a smartphone, the notification will be viewed within seconds if notifications are turned on in the phone’s settings. It is the quickest way for us to get information out, especially in emergency situations.”

Users can access vast information such as Sheriff Ezell Brown’s newsletter, events, BOLO, jail information, sex offenders, inmate search, join our team, submit a tip and contact us.

Since the app’s inception, Jett highlighted that NCSO is “continuously adding features.” For instance, the latest development has been on the front page of the app with an interactive calendar. On top of that, NCSO is working toward getting its website to connect to the app.

Overall, Jett emphasized that the addition of the app has paid off in the year-plus it’s been a part of NCSO’s communications efforts. She and the communication team are happy with the results.

“We are very pleased with the agency’s smartphone app, and we are excited for the features we are working towards adding to the app in the near future,” Jett said. “It has greatly increased our communication efforts, and we hope our Newton County community sees this as a helpful tool when searching for information about the Newton County Sheriff’s Office.”