Jacksonville sheriff holds town hall, discusses Duval Connect program, new transparency portal

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office is working to engage with the community in more ways.

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Last night, Sheriff TK Waters held the first of a series of town halls, and transparency was a key word. Sheriff Waters said his goal is to answer any questions brought to him by the community to the best of his ability.

Let’s go over some of the things that were discussed at the town hall meeting. JSO recently reorganized its patrol districts. The idea was to adjust it to put more officers in areas of higher need, and Waters said the plan appears to be working.

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He also talked about fighting crime through Duval Connect, which can allow police access to your home cameras to solve crimes. However, the sheriff wanted to stress that the agency isn’t controlling your cameras. People who opt-in will simply be in a database, and if a crime happens in the area, JSO will contact them for surveillance footage.

The sheriff’s office also unveiled a new transparency website. One new feature allows people to get access to crime data that JSO said will be updated daily.

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Through these town halls, the sheriff said JSO is focusing on connecting with the community.

“I like the chance to talk and talk about things that are going on within the agency because I think it’s important for people to know and ask questions,” Waters said at the meeting.

The next town hall meeting will be on Thursday, Aug. 8. It will be held at the Church of Eleven22 on Commerce Center Drive.

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