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Calif. police jump on the Twitter bandwagon

By Sean Emery
Orange County Register

ORANGE COUNTY, Calif. — Local law enforcement agencies are jumping on the Twitter bandwagon, exploring how the popular social-networking service can help keep crime-watchers and local residents in the loop when it comes to police incidents and other emergencies.

Some Orange County police departments in the past few months have made a quiet move to Twitter, using the new social networking site to send messages - or tweets - directly to interested followers.

So far the twittering agencies have focused primarily on using the service as a new way to quickly deliver incident reports, news updates and links to media coverage. But some say the service could also provide a new way for police to either reach out for the public’s help, or warn them of possible danger.

Irvine Police Lt. John Hare headed up his department’s first foray into Twitter in early July. Since then, Hare has sent out several dozen tweets, focusing on announcements and links to media write-ups on Irvine crime, descriptions of upcoming department events, and traffic warnings for local drivers.

“We thought it might be a nice way to share information with people who are inclined to follow electronically,” Hare said. “It’s been kind of a side project that I wanted to use to push information to the public.”

Brea Police made the jump to Twitter several weeks ago, Sgt. Bill Smyser said, also linking to write-ups of crime incidents and warnings of traffic accidents and construction.

“It’s very short, brief, easy to read bits of information,” Smyser said.

Other police departments, including Newport Beach, Cypress and Orange, said they are considering starting their own Twitter feeds.

“It’s a great way to disseminate information to the public,” Orange police Sgt. Dan Adams said.

Several police departments say they are taking their Twitter cues from the Orange County Fire Authority, whose leaders have become an active part of the local social networking community.

OCFA Captain Greg McKeown says the service allows him to quickly communicate with media, citizen groups, and government agencies without having to be near a computer.

“The majority of our messages are incident related. We try to keep the information very current on what we are doing,” McKeown said. “It helps the community groups or cities we are covering follow what their fire department is doing.”

Police officials say the next step for their Twitter efforts could include putting out direct alerts to parts of the community at risk for various crimes or emergencies.

“For instance, if we have a string of burglaries in a certain area, we could say ‘several have occurred here, we advise you to use caution and keep your doors and windows locked,’” Smyser said.

Of course, Twitter is only one of many communication tools police have at their disposal, from Reverse 911 and mass notification systems in emergencies to e-mailed or web-posted press releases for day-to-day crime bulletins.

Police say the amount of attention they pay to Twitter may depend on the size of their audience, which ranges from two-dozen followers for Brea’s Twitter feed to nearly 300 for OCFA.

“When you need to put out timely information you have to hit as many people as possible,” Hare said.

Copyright 2009 Orange County Register