Police departments
The three websites present information and contacts that can be used by victims to report crimes any cases of abuse. The Essex County Sheriff’s office and Dover NJ police department have information that can be accessed more by the local people while NJ state police website has broad information that can be accessed by victims in wider areas. The websites provide information on procedures that victims should follow in reporting various cases of abuses to the police departments. This information provides the victims with ability to submit complaints ask questions and obtain feedback through the websites. In Essexe County, the platform can be accessed easily by those individuals with basic internet knowledge to obtain the various law enforcement services offered in the department. For the platform to be of great help to the victims, they have to log in with their names or email which will enable them to communicate with crime-stoppers. Specifically, the website provides information on reporting various crimes such terrorism, child abuse and how one can protect themselves from various crime and terrorism cases. This website allows only the individuals who understand English language to use it, since other people cannot use the website on their own but requires a translator.
The website for Dover Town police department provide more elaborate platform where an icon for contact information is provided and emergency services clearly highlighted. For this website, a person is able to register with a notification system for emergencies. The contact information is quite necessary since the victim having the telephone numbers and extension numbers can reach the law enforcement officers and the other staff working in the department and who can provide the needed help. The emergency services offered requires a person to register with their details which means that other people cannot access the emergency notifications. Such notifications are necessary where the department want to alert the residents about any issues in their neighborhoods like terrorism. The website also provides information about social media notifications that can be used by victims to obtain information from the department. An important feature of this website is that it allows the user to choose the language which they best understand and hence improving accessibility of information and procedures provided. Victims from different backgrounds especially the minority foreigners can easily submit their complaints through the site and hence access the various law enforcement services provided by the site.
The NJ state police website also provides important messages that can be used by victims to access the available services. The site gives clear direction that if a victim wants to report any emergencies they should not use e-mails but call the local police report departments or sheriff since e-emails cannot be receive the attention of law enforcement officers immediately. The platform’s shortcoming is that it cannot be of much use to individuals who do not understand English language since other languages are not catered for.
These websites may not be of much help to the caregivers for elderly persons if many do not have knowledge about basic technology and internet. These elderly people feel that they have been excluded by technology and they may have difficulties while trying to access the websites. Majority of such people would need a person to walk them through every step of using the website and submitting any complaints.
References
New Jersey State Police. Retrieved from: http://www.njsp.org/contact-us.shtml
Essex County Sheriffs office. Retrieved from: http://www.essexsheriff.com/safety-tips/
Town of Dover Police Department: Retrieved from: http://www.dover.nj.us/Cit-e-Access/webpage.cfm?TID=17&TPID=11910
