Weld County Sheriff’s Office by the Numbers
359,442
Residents
250
FOIA Requests Per Month
34
JustFOIA Users
3
JustFOIA Forms
Law enforcement agencies face a host of challenges with records requests:
- Tracking skyrocketing numbers of requests
- Protecting sensitive data
- Proving compliance with complex regulations
- Avoiding unnecessary public scrutiny
Weld County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) in Northeast Colorado was no exception.
The Colorado Criminal Justice Records Act (CCJRA) requires agencies to release arrest, conviction, and some other records.
With about 250 requests a month, Records Manager Ann Velasquez was struggling to keep up.
Manual Processes and the Records Request Spreadsheet
Before JustFOIA, WCSO used a system that many agencies across the country do: requests were emailed to a group email and tracked on a shared records request spreadsheet.
The challenges they faced will sound familiar as well.
With so many requests and emails back and forth about them, “The group email would get overloaded and start to lag. It was difficult to even search through the group email,” Ann recalled.
Plus, manually logging requests on the spreadsheet wasn’t just time consuming—it opened the door for overwriting or deleting information. Eventually, the file became so large and unwieldy that data became corrupted.
“The final straw was all of the times we had to submit a ticket to our IT department because of it crashing constantly and then work getting lost,” Ann said.
The spreadsheet wasn’t working to track requests accurately—meaning one would occasionally fall through the cracks. All of those problems left the door open for failing to comply with the CCJRA.
But even when the process was working as intended, it was cumbersome and inefficient. Staff had to field frequent calls from requesters who wanted to know the status of their requests.
Because of the sensitive nature of law enforcement data, staff had to manually encrypt files to email them to requesters.
Plus, they didn’t have a secure way to collect payments online. Requesters had to either visit in person or send their ID and credit card information over email.
“For some people, that was very upsetting,” Ann said.
Choosing JustFOIA
Shortly after Ann took over as Records Manager, she got an email from a JustFOIA solution consultant telling her about the system—and she could tell right away that it would help alleviate many of their struggles.
“I told my boss, and we sat in on a demo. We really loved it. But at the time we couldn’t fit it into the budget.”
But in the meantime, their difficulty tracking requests continued to pose compliance risks.
“The County Attorney is the one who finally said, ‘We need this. Do whatever you need to get this.’”
Ann wanted to do her due diligence before committing to a purchase, so she evaluated four other records request solutions. But JustFOIA stood out for its user-friendliness.
“JustFOIA was the one I wanted, and luckily everybody else agreed with me.”
The Results
Once the County Attorney helped them get the budget approval they needed, WCSO was up and running in JustFOIA quickly.
“It was definitely one of the smoothest software implementations that I’ve ever gone through,” Ann said. “There was so much handholding, which I loved, and if we had any questions, we always had somebody there for us to walk us through it.”
Read more about JustFOIA’s personalized onboarding experience.
With JustFOIA, the Weld County Sheriff’s Office transformed its records request process into an efficient operation.
Accurate Redaction
The sensitive nature of law enforcement records, such as victim identities or evidence-related documents, demands that redactions and exemptions are handled with care.
“I have to give final approval on everything that’s released. Before JustFOIA, I don’t know how many times I would have to send something back and say, ‘You need to remove this.’ So she’d have to start over, because we were using Adobe Pro for redactions at the time.”
Unlike Adobe, the JustFOIA redaction module has a built-in workflow for approvals. The initial redactor can redact information in draft mode, which allows the approver to “see through” redactions to understand what’s been removed. Only once the approver finalizes the redactions is the document able to be released.
Efficiency Gains
Without scattered tools and manual tracking, staff can manage all aspects of requests within one system.
The internal discussion board became an essential tool for internal communication, allowing team members to leave updates and share information without relying on emails or in-person conversations.
“Being able to communicate in the discussion board is a big one for me,” Velasquez explained. This feature eliminated confusion and made it easier for team members to step in and assist when others were unavailable.
“And you don’t have to then go and add notes into the spreadsheet. That saves a lot of time.”
All of this means requests are processed faster.
“The easiest requests are the traffic accident reports, so I’d say it takes maybe 30 minutes just to upload everything and respond back to the requester,” Ann said.
Improved Compliance and Tracking
Before implementing JustFOIA, their reliance on a patchwork of spreadsheets, email groups, and manual processes made it difficult to track whether all requests were handled correctly.
“But with JustFOIA, we have the ability to track and see everything in one area instead of struggling to find, ‘Did we respond to this email?’”
It’s important not only that the Sheriff’s Office responded to all requests appropriately, but also that they have the documentation to prove it. JustFOIA’s audit trail provides the details they need to protect themselves in case anyone questions their compliance.
Community Experience
For requesters, JustFOIA introduced a new level of transparency and convenience. Instead of calling the office for status updates, requesters can check their requests in real time through their profile in the Public Portal.
Ann noted, “The ability to go back in there and see the status of their request is huge…I’ve gotten a lot of people mention, you know, ‘Oh, it looks like it’s in progress.’”
This visibility reassures requesters that their submissions are being actively handled and fosters trust in the process.
Plus, JustFOIA’s secure online payment options alleviated concerns about sharing sensitive information via email or mailing checks. Requesters can now complete payments easily and confidently.
Expanding Use Cases
In the future, the Sheriff’s Office plans to use their JustFOIA system even more extensively. Currently, Body-Worn Camera (BWC) footage requests are handled manually. But Ann intends to create a new form to process those requests in JustFOIA as well.
She expects the transition to be smooth. “It’s not that hard to train someone to use JustFOIA because it’s very self-explanatory,” she said.
Ready to Learn More?
The Weld County Sheriff’s Office’s journey with JustFOIA demonstrates how a user-friendly platform can be an indispensable tool for law enforcement agencies.
And it’s not just the agency that benefits—it’s a quality of life improvement for Ann, too.
“Going home on time for once is really nice. So is being able to go on my lunch break!”
If your organization faces similar challenges with records requests, now is the time to explore how JustFOIA can help.
Schedule a personalized demo today and see firsthand how JustFOIA can make records management easier, faster, and more secure. Fill out the form below to learn more and start your journey toward a more efficient future.