St. Clair County Sheriff's Department releasing mobile app this summer

St. Clair County residents will soon be able to more easily access information about the county jail and sheriff’s department, make tips, or receive alerts from an app on their mobile phone.

The county’s board of commissioners signed off on a three-year contract with OCV, LLC to develop TheSheriffApp earlier this month with a $27,975 start-up cost and an annual cost of $11,985 thereafter.

On Tuesday, Sheriff Mat King said they expected the app to be downloadable for Apple and Android mobile devices by sometime in early July.

“We had to get it funded. Right now, we’re building it,” he said. “… You’ll (be able to) download the app for the St. Clair County Sheriff’s Office. You’ll be able to contact the sheriff’s office (with) various questions, tips, and it really is a great tool for the jail for interacting with the jail to find out who is in custody, who’s not in custody, and to be able to reach information on different cases.”

According to a memo to the county board, county officials cited the app’s ability to accommodate free downloads, its user-friendly interface and dashboard layout in selecting TheSheriffApp as the provider over an additional, slightly less costly quote of $11,800 annually from StackBench.

King said they’ve been working on the idea since first meeting with the provider a year and a half ago.

He called it a good tool for the public, as well as his office. And although they’re still finalizing features, he added they can share bulletins and annual reports instead of from a web browser, while also allowing access to inmate searches and emergency alerts for things like traffic crashes.

“It really creates an extra level of transparency and a quicker ability for the public to interact with sheriff’s office, maybe the jail, or road patrol,” King said. “But it’s an example of always keeping up with technology. I’m really excited about it.”

King said a more formal announcement with key features will be shared when the app is ready. The sheriff’s department is active on its social media, including its Facebook page.

Contact Jackie Smith at (810) 989-6270 or jssmith@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Port Huron Times Herald: St. Clair County Sheriff's Department releasing mobile app this summer