South Jacksonville police are using a new electronic ticket system to print citations in patrol cars and send them directly to court.
Goroden Koff/Getty Images
South Jacksonville police officers are about a month into using a new system that allows them to issue and print electronic tickets instead of handwritten paper tickets.
South Jacksonville Police Chief Eric Hansell said the department implemented the ticket system at the beginning of April at the request of the Morgan County Circuit Clerk’s Office.
Article continues below this ad
“We went live at the beginning of April,” Hansell said. “This is a transition that the circuit clerk wanted us to do. Other agencies are in the process of transitioning.”
The program allows officers to electronically fill out tickets, warnings, accident reports and other items, print them from the vehicles and give them to the driver.
The tickets are also automatically submitted to the circuit clerk’s office.
Hansell said he goal was to improve readability and reduce issues with handwriting, as well as help decrease mistakes.
Article continues below this ad
“I think one of the clerk’s drives was handwriting and legibility,” Hansell said. “With so many officers, sometimes handwriting can be hard to read. The system provides clean, legible tickets.”
The system also assigns court dates, so there are fewer issues with officers assigning dates that fall on court holidays or periods when the judge is out.
In 2011, the circuit clerk’s office began taking a portion of ticket revenue and placing it into an e-ticket fund that helps cover the cost of the programs and equipment needed to ensure each department operates on the system.
Hansell said the new system is taking time for the officers to learn, but said it will make things cleaner and quicker once officers learn it.
Article continues below this ad
“In theory this will be a time saver,” Hansell said.
Before the new system was implemented, the officers would provide a written ticket, with paper copies being submitted to the department. Hansell would review the tickets before taking them up to the courthouse.
The system now handles that process automatically, including auto-filling driver and vehicle information for the officer based on the license plate.
Hansell said the program is also searchable and will generate various reports, including some that must be submitted to the Illinois Department of Transportation.
Article continues below this ad
Hansell said there are a few things they are still working on, including updating all the equipment.
The department has ordered new computers for the cars and expects to have them installed within the next few weeks.
He said they also have to work with the program company get out-of-state information to transfer into the system. While officers can still look up raw data on out-of-state drivers and plates, the information does not transfer automatically as it does for Illinois drivers and vehicles.
Hansell said they are supposed to meet with the company to discuss issues, including out-of-state information not transferring properly.
Article continues below this ad
Another issue is that the tickets cannot be edited by the department once submitted, which Hansell said can cause an issue if an officer made a mistake inputting something, such as an address.
If there is an issue, Hansell said they have to contact the circuit clerk’s office and have them fix the problem.
“The system does other things too, like accident reports, but we haven’t transitioned that,” Hansell said. “We just started with this one part for now and we will eventually transition. I didn’t want the officers to do it all at once.”