Lake County Sheriff's Office Partners With Ring For Crime Solving

LAKE COUNTY, IL — In an effort to further protect the community, the Lake County Sheriff's office announced a new partnership with Ring, a home security devices company. According to a news release from the sheriff's office, Sheriff John Idleburg authorized an agreement with Ring in October, to help sheriff’s deputies and detectives solve crime with the community’s assistance.

According to the sheriff's office, this partnership will aid criminal investigators in capturing criminal acts being committed, the faces of suspects involved in a criminal acts, or the cars used to commit a crime. It also gives the sheriff’s office and the community another platform to be able to have back-and-forth dialogue, the release said.

The sheriff's office wants the community to know that the partnership won't allow unapproved access to any videos recorded by your ring devices, and doesn't allow sheriff’s office staff to see who owns a Ring device, according to the release. In addition, sheriff’s office personnel will never be able to see a "live view" from your Ring devices.

Instead, when sheriff’s staff believe a crime may have been captured on a Ring device, sheriff’s office personnel can send a message to members of the community in a specific geographical region via the Neighbors App through Ring, according to the release. Then, community members can see if their device captured anything relevant, and camera owners will have the choice to share the video directly with the Sheriff’s Office, or decline the request. Ring customers also have the option to decline receiving messages from the sheriff’s office, the release said.

“Anytime we can utilize a new platform to communicate and work with the community on solving crimes, it’s a win for everyone," said Sheriff John Idleburg, in the release. "Video technology is everywhere and can be extremely useful in holding thieves and other criminals accountable for victimizing others. We are excited to work with Ring and our residents on the Neighbors App on this non-intrusive collaborative approach to helping solve crime.”

Residents can download The Neighbors App for free on iOS, Android and FireOS devices.