Hamilton County launches justice app to combat unnecessary incarceration and save taxpayer money

“Most people do not like dealing with the complex justice system – whether they are victims of a crime or accused of a crime,” said Vince Dean, clerk of the Hamilton County Criminal Court, at a news conference Tuesday.

A new smartphone application called Hamilton County Judicial Services, now available to the public, is a one-stop shop that will make things a little easier, Dean said.

The app offers many features and information, including where criminal courts, juvenile courts, civil courts and alternative sentencing courts are located and what services each court offers. The app cost the county about $20,000 to develop, and a three-year service contract cost another $20,000, Dean said.

The app will not only improve the efficiency of the court system and local government, but also reduce costs for taxpayers, Hamilton County Commissioner David Sharpe (Democrat of Red Bank) said at the conference.

“It will also go a long way in ensuring that people who are dealing with the court system can stay home with their families and do their jobs in the workplace, which ultimately leads to a safer environment,” Sharpe said. “These are important things that often go unmentioned.”

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The county wants to reduce the number of charges for failure to appear in court, said Criminal Court Chief of Staff Jason Clark.

About 10% of incarcerations each year are for people who miss court dates unnecessarily, Clark said. Incarcerating these people costs the county about $100,000 each year.

Once a defendant is released from the Hamilton County Jail, he or she will automatically receive a text message from the application about any upcoming court dates related to the arrest, Clarke said.

The first notice will be sent three days before the scheduled court date, and another reminder will be sent the day before, Clark said.

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Victims of crime can sign up for a similar service to receive a push notification each time the case is added to the court docket.

Those who have received a substitute sentence can also use the app to communicate with the office and probation officers about programs such as alcohol and GPS monitoring.

“Instead of making 10, 15 phone calls to find out where they need to go, with this application they will know,” Clark said.

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Anyone ordered to pay court costs or a fine can now pay through the app instead of driving to court. Defendants in Hamilton County owe criminal and general courtrooms more than $234 million in unpaid fines, Dean said earlier this month.

The court system plans to partner with the sheriff's office, which also just released a new app, Dean said, with the goal of making the information accessible on both platforms.

“It literally took a village to get to this point,” Dean said.

Contact Sofia Saric at [email protected] or 423-757-6476.