Tweet From the Beat: DUI Edition

NEWS RELEASE 18-059 - MARCH 20, 2018
Tweet from the Beat DUI 2

The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office invites community members to take part in a virtual ride-along beginning at 5:00 p.m., Friday, March 30.

Known globally as a “Tweet from the Beat”, the initiative sparked as law enforcement agencies began offering virtual ride-alongs via social media as a tool for community outreach. The sheriff’s office launched their inaugural “Tweet from the Beat” in September 2016. The purpose of the program is to give community members a look at policing in real-time from the passenger seat of a patrol vehicle, while exposing how challenging and dynamic a shift can be. A member of the agency’s Community Affairs Office accompanies a deputy for up to 12 hours to take photos and videos and share them to the agency’s Twitter account in real time. “Tweet from the Beat: DUI Edition” will focus on identifying and removing impaired drivers from Sarasota County roadways. The agency’s DUI Unit will also focus on overall traffic enforcement and education.

“This is a very interesting and meaningful time of year for our Traffic and DUI Units,” said Sheriff Tom Knight. “It’s spring break in Sarasota County which means residents and visitors are out and about and our roadways are busier than usual. Giving community members an opportunity to jump in the passenger seat, ask questions, see what an arrest looks like and the inside of our jail means connecting with citizens on a new level.”

To follow along during the “Tweet from the Beat”, citizens can create a Twitter account by visiting www.Twitter.com/SignUp and following the sheriff’s office account @SarasotaSheriff.