Cook County Sheriff Unveils Website Redesign

As part of an ongoing commitment to transparency and helping residents better understand office operations, Cook County Sheriff Thomas J. Dart is introducing several changes to the sheriff’s website, improving the flow of information to the public. Among the new features at www.cookcountysheriff.com are: Pictures and descriptions of the sheriff’s “most wanted” fugitives A daily “crime blotter” listing recent police calls in unincorporated Cook County Information on “cold cases” being handled by sheriff’s police investigators Maps listing residences of sex offenders living in unincorporated Cook County Also newly available on the site is more detailed “inmate information,” including booking mug shots of all detainees currently housed in the Cook County Jail. Those pictures are updated every hour and information is also available about that detainee’s visiting day, criminal charge, next court date and the amount needed to bail that person out of jail. The site also includes links to videos providing a guided tour of every division at the 9,000-inmate jail, along with detailed descriptions of and contact information for each jail building. Rules for visiting detainees and directions for posting bond are also available. There are also tabs providing information about other departments in the sheriff’s office, with photos and videos delivering more detailed descriptions of programs – including the boot camp, jail garden, women’s programs and other office operations. Prior features of the website remain and it’s expected that additions will be made as the site continues to evolve. Part of those improvements are likely to come as a result of another new feature, “My Sheriff’s Office,” which allows visitors to email ideas to Sheriff Dart on things the office is doing right and ideas for ways to do things better.