Social Media Policy - Sheriff's Office

Hamilton County, Indiana, Sheriff's Comments Policy

This site is not monitored for response to criminal incidents. If a deputy or first responder is needed, contact Hamilton County Communications at 317-773-1282 for non-emergency incidents or 911 for an emergency.

The purpose of this site is to present matters relevant to the services, activities, issues, or policies of Hamilton County.  We encourage you to submit your questions, comments, criticisms and concerns, but please note that this is a moderated online discussion site and not a public forum.

Material covered by this policy includes not just comments, but also images and links to other sites.  The county reserves the right to remove any material that, in whole or in part, does not comply with this policy or applicable law.

The county also reserves the right to remove material that

  1. contains anything obscene, vulgar or sexually explicit
  2. is spam
  3. advocates or depicts illegal activity
  4. targets or disparages any ethnic, racial, religious, gender, or other type of group
  5. contains personal attacks of any kind
  6. promotes private business ventures, services, products
  7. campaigns for public office or promotes a political organization or candidate
  8. infringes on copyrights or trademarks
  9. jeopardizes the safety of personnel, or the conduct of operations or investigations
  10. is off topic

Additionally, the agency reserves the right to remove comments and posts containing the following:

  • Profane language
  • Support or opposition of a political issue or candidate
  • Comments that promote discrimination in any form
  • Commercial advertising
  • Violation of a citizen’s privacy
  • Violation of intellectual or property rights
  • Any other comment deemed a violation of agency policy, county guidelines, or law

Repeat offenders may be banned from agency social media sites.

Programs or events provided by organizations that serve Hamilton County residents and receive funding or support from the county or provide professional support to special populations served by county programs are not considered private business ventures, services, or products.

In addition, the county reserves the right to remove material containing computer viruses or that otherwise may disrupt, damage or restrict the use of any computer software or hardware or telecommunications equipment.

Please note that material posted on this site or links created by anyone other than the county does not reflect the opinions and position of Hamilton County.