PASCO COUNTY, Fla. — Well, it's official. The Pasco Sheriff's Office has disabled comments on its Facebook page and beyond.
The agency previously announced the move was coming after seeing a spike in people using the comment section and messages on social media to submit tips, rather than going through the designated channels. That raised concerns because the agency's social media platforms aren't monitored 24/7, leading to an increased chance that a tip could be missed or spotted too late to help.
"Time is of the utmost importance when it comes to solving cases, especially when it comes to finding missing people. Tips submitted through the proper means help us follow up on and investigate these tips faster," the sheriff's office wrote, in part.
To ensure people no longer use social media to submit tips in Pasco County, the sheriff's office on Monday went ahead and disabled comments on all its social platforms. On top of Facebook, those included Instagram and Twitter.
However, you are still encouraged to submit a tip and report a crime. Here's how to do that in Pasco County:
- If it's an emergency, call 911.
- Pasco County's non-emergency line: 727-847-8102, opt. 7
- Pasco County's crime tips line: 1-800-706-2488
- Pasco County's online crime reporting: pascosheriff.com, click on "citizen online reporting."
- Pasco County's online tip reporting: pascosheriff.com/tips
Sheriff Chris Nocco posted to the agency's social media pages Monday afternoon, saying the decision to disable comments was not one taken lightly.
"With the continued growth in our county and the need to continue to provide resources to serve our growing population, there was not a possibility to hire the people that would be required to monitor our social media platforms on a consistent, 24/7 basis for 365 days a year," Nocco explained. "Even at that point, we may still miss a critical tip as social media was not designed for that purpose."
Nocco highlighted the mental health impacts when comments turn ugly. About 80 to 85 percent of Pasco County's calls to the sheriff's office included a mental health element, according to its Facebook post.
"Imagine, just for a moment, if that was your loved one that had gone missing and you are desperate to find them but, instead of seeing help, you see commentary asking about their upbringing, their looks or the type of picture that was provided to law enforcement," Nocco's Facebook post said. "I shudder to think of a scenario where a family may attempt to find their loved one on their own, for fear of the repercussion that these negative comments could have, only to wait too long to alert law enforcement and a tragic situation occurs.
The sheriff's office posts can still be shared on Facebook and quote tweeted on Twitter. If you'd like to give feedback to the sheriff's office, you can do so by calling their tip lines.