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Software upgrade

New system helps clerks, jail staff in Sheriff’s Department

-Messenger photo by Peter Kaspari Christy Nelson, a civil clerk with the Webster County Sheriff's Department, prepares to log in to Zuercher, software the department recently purchased. Nelson said the software, which is also used in the jail, has helped improve efficiency within the department.

New technology recently purchased by the Webster County Sheriff’s Department aims to help make its operations more efficient.

The software, created by Zuercher Technologies, of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, primarily impacts the department’s civil and office operations, as well as the Webster County Jail, according to Sheriff Jim Stubbs.

“It’s still a work in progress, but it’s redoing our forms, our civil papers, financial end and jail booking,” Stubbs said.

The software was purchased after the previous technology no longer provided support.

“So we ended up going with new software,” Stubbs said.

Zuercher Technologies, according to the sheriff, has a nationwide presence but has only recently been moving into Iowa. Some places in the state that have already adopted the technology include Marshall County and Poweshiek County.

The staff members who primarily utilize the software said it has made several changes to how they do their jobs.

Christy Nelson, one of the department’s civil clerks, said the new software has cut down on the time she spends working on both criminal and civil cases.

“I spend less time entering in cases,” Nelson said. “Now the deputies enter the cases in, where before they would fill it out on paper and we would have to enter it in again.”

It’s also made organization better.

“Now we can put most everything in the system, where before we’d have photos in one file and papers everywhere basically,” she said. “Now it’s all in one section. I pull up the case and it’s all there.”

This has also made it easier for the county attorney’s office to access criminal case files. Nelson said before, somebody would have to hand-deliver the paperwork to the office. Now, it’s in a computer system that both offices have access to.

It’s also cut down on paperwork for the Webster County Jail, according to Jail Sgt. Shawna Dencklau.

“We’re going to be saving a lot on our budget with scanning and emailing than when we had to print everything off and send it to different entities,” Dencklau said, adding those entities include the county attorney’s office and the Department of Human Services.

“Now we can just email straight from the system,” Dencklau said.

In addition, the time it takes to book inmates into the jail has been reduced by more than half the time.

“It used to take us 45 minutes to book someone in,” she said. “Now it will only take us 15 minutes to book someone in.”

Dencklau added that the jail staff can now scan in documents that the inmates need, which includes prescriptions they may have as well as information about any medical conditions.

Before that, Dencklau said jail staff would have to contact any doctors the inmates may have visited to confirm any medications or prescriptions.

She also said the new technology also helps with any mental health conditions inmates may be dealing with. If an inmate says they suffer from mental health ailments or have been suicidal, that information is immediately sent to the county health department so they are aware of the inmates.

Dencklau said this information is saved into the jail’s system, so if an inmate gets arrested again, the jail will automatically know their history.

Stubbs said, while staff are still figuring out the system, he believes it will be a big benefit to the department.

“It’s clearing up some of our records,” he said. “We’re still in the transition phase and there’s still a learning curve to it.”

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