Manatee County Sheriff’s Office moves Nextdoor

Move over Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.

Law enforcement agencies might use those networks to solve crimes, but a newer social media platform is beefing up the ability of the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office to interact directly with communities. It’s called Nextdoor.

The platform connects neighborhoods through message boards with the ability to private message one another. Participation is limited to residents within their respective communities.

The Sheriff’s Office, which announced its partnership with Nextdoor on Sept. 7, has been using the platform to target safety and crime issues specific to each neighborhood. Since the launch, 1,000 new users have joined, bringing total users in Manatee County to nearly 20,000.

“I think it will really take us to the next level,” Manatee Sheriff’s Office spokesman Dave Bristow said of communicating with residents about crime trends and other issues. “You can put it on Facebook. You can put it on media, but not everybody sees it. If you can get the majority of the people in a neighborhood on something, it’s a great way to communicate. We’re getting very good feedback.”

For example, if a string of burglaries were committed in Braden Woods, the Sheriff’s Office could post information to that neighborhood specifically. Residents could reply publicly with information or private message the Sheriff’s Office with details.

In a Sept. 16 post, Capt. Robert Mealey said several neighborhoods experienced overnight vehicle burglaries and reminded people to lock their car doors and remove valuables from sight. He even posted surveillance photos of the suspect. Among the 21 replies from residents were time stamps for some of the burglaries, descriptions of suspects and good-natured banter about parking vehicles in garages instead of driveways. A woman from the Oak Bend community even posted an image of a boy coming around the neighborhood and asking for money around the times of the burglaries.

Capt. Rick Gerkin, a lead on the Nextdoor partnership, said any conversations tagged under the “crime and safety” category are visible to the Sheriff’s Office, although he doesn’t see conversations about babysitters, rattlesnakes or other noncrime related topics. So, if someone posts a note about a strange blue car parked in the neighborhood, and it’s tagged “crime and safety,” the Sheriff’s Office can see it.

“What you may not know is that the Sheriff’s Office is looking for a blue car,” he said. “We actually have that in one of the unlocked vehicle burglary trends. The communication and the open dialogue within the community is paramount for us.

“It’s going to be hard to commit a crime, drive somewhere and not be detected,” he said.

Through the forum, deputies can field questions or address concerns, such as discussion about traffic along Upper Manatee River Road during construction. They also can post messages about services provided by the Sheriff’s Office, and survey residents about potential topics for community programs — which it already did, with nearly 400 participants offering opinions.

Four-year Braden Woods resident Kari Sylvester, who posted about a hit-and-run incident in her neighborhood, said having the Sheriff’s Office involved in Nextdoor provides her with an even greater sense of security.

“This is the very first time I think we have felt a strong sense of community,” she said.