Office of Paula S. O'Neil, Ph.D., Clerk & Comptroller, Criminal Image Viewer

About the Program

Category: Information Technology (Best in Category)

Year: 2016

No longer can an agency remain status quo with the ever-changing technologies that are introduced and budgets that are constantly being reduced. New technology that offers opportunities to simplify and become more efficient frequently becomes available. Additionally, legislative or judicial mandates require workflow changes, and technology has to be leveraged to be in compliance within the given timeframe. In a government agency, the development and use of new technology is important if it wants to increase productivity and reduce costs. The Pasco County Clerk & Comptroller’s Office is constantly working towards innovative solutions for the challenges it faces. At times, transition to a modern technological environment is required before the ability is available to meet the requirement. It is, at times, like this when creative solutions are necessary to meet the forward movement towards being fully electronic. Such an opportunity was presented when an administrative order was issued by the Florida Supreme Court that required all counties in Florida to accept electronic filings through the Florida Courts E-Filing Portal (Portal). This administrative order posed a challenge for the Pasco County Clerk & Comptroller’s Office’s Criminal Department, which still utilized a legacy mainframe case maintenance system called the Criminal Justice Information System (CJIS), which could not accept or store electronically filed images. To comply with the administrative order and meet the timeline required, the Pasco County Clerk & Comptroller’s Criminal and Information Technology Departments collaborated to design, develop, and implement the Criminal Image Viewer. The Criminal Image Viewer was designed as a solution in complying with the administrative order, while allowing time to convert to a modern case management system called CLERICUS. This solution provided additional benefits, such as, an increase in productivity, a reduction in errors and costs, the expediting of recording official documents, and the electronic transmission of court documents to outside agencies. This designed solution demonstrates the versatility of the team and the ability to find inventive solutions to difficult challenges the organization regularly faces.