If Elected, Candidate Wants to Improve Sheriff Dept. Social Media Presence

Democratic candidate for Bucks County Sheriff, Dennis McCauley said Tuesday that he thinks the department should enter the social media age.

If elected in November, McCauley would be sure that “social media will be an important part of his public outreach strategy,” according to a written statement from his campaign.

McCauley is a regular presence on Twitter and Facebook . He has used Twitter also in his position as a Doylestown Borough council person.

“Social media has become a part of daily life for many residents of Bucks County. They understand that social media is a great way to inform and interact with the public,” McCauley said.

Currently, the sheriff’s office does not maintain a social media presence. In neighboring Montgomery County, Sheriff Eileen Behr keeps a Facebook page to interact and inform the public. Other Bucks County offices and police departments keep social media pages and often use them.

Social media pages are cost-effective ways for businesses and governmental agencies to provide information to those they serve. The power of social media was demonstrated by Bristol Township, Middletown and Tullytown officials during Hurricane Sandy. Those municipalities used social media to distribute the latest on the storm and the following recovery efforts.

The release from the McCauley campaign also said that the candidate hopes to modernize the department website if he is elected.

McCauley’s campaign has, for the most part, focused on reforming the sheriff’s department, which has been the focus on a grand jury investigation, federal lawsuits and several other controversies. If he wins, the Doylestown resident has said previously that he plans to rid the department of political influence and “restore public trust.”

The candidate held a press conference in June where he asked for the state attorney general to  release  the results of  a 2011 grand jury investigation in the sheriff’s department.