SAN MARCOS, Texas —
The Hays County Sheriff's Office (HCSO) has launched an online reporting system.
Residents and visitors to the county can now report certain crimes to the sheriff's office online. Those crimes include lost property, property damage, theft of less than $2,500 and telephone harassment.
"The Online Reporting System was built to offer citizens additional avenues or reporting crimes and incidents that do not require an immediate response by law enforcement. This system also allows dispatchers to offer the option to callers, in turn allowing deputies to respond to high priority calls more efficiently," the HCSO said, adding, "It's important to note that even if citizens call in with a non-violent incident, they still have the option of having a deputy respond to assist."
The HCSO said all cases will be assigned for review to determine if there is additional information needed for the case. If the reported incident doesn't have enough information to be passed along to investigators, the submission will be rejected and returned to the citizen who reported it so they can add the required information.
Once a report is submitted and reviewed, citizens will be contacted by an investigator assigned to the case.
"This online reporting system gives the public a more direct path to investigators that look at non-violent and non-emergent incidents," the HCSO said.
The sheriff's office said it is also important to ensure the reported crime happened within its jurisdiction. The online reporting system provides guidance on the jurisdiction of a reported crime, so citizens will be made aware if they need to report their incident to a different law enforcement agency.
Learn more about the new system.