In her report to Sheriff Tim Gobble, Ms. Irons wrote that the staff of the sheriff’s office is to be commended for an excellent job.

Audit shows sheriff’s office in compliance with requirements to access criminal information network and more.

        The Bradley County Sheriff’s Office received high marks in a recent audit of it’s compliance with policies governing the Tennessee Information Enforcement System (TIES).

        The audit was conducted by Ginger Irons, Law Enforcement Information Coordinator of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation’s regional office in Chattanooga.   

        Audits are required by the Administrative Rules of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and policies of the FBI’s Criminal Justice Information Services Division require states to check each agency for compliance every three years.

        In her report to Sheriff Tim Gobble, Ms. Irons wrote that the staff of the sheriff’s office is to be commended for an excellent job.

        TIES is a complex computer network used by local, state and federal law enforcement agencies to access intrastate and interstate communication databases. Included are the TBI’s Criminal History Repository, the FBI’s National Crime Information Center (NCIC), and the National Law Enforcement Telecommunications System (NLETS).   

        Persons who require access to the information network as part of their employment are required to successfully complete an extensive training program before they can sit down at a computer terminal and access the network.  The training includes the long list of computer codes that are used to access a variety of information ranging from drivers license data to warrants, the rules and regulations that limit access to the information, and the confidentiality of information that is obtainable.   

Each agency has a Terminal Agency Coordinator who is responsible compliance with all state and federal rules and regulations governing use of the computer network. The TAC is also responsible for training new users and annual re-training of existing users.   

        “There is a lot of work that goes into compliance, and Gwen Beavers does a good job as our TAC,” said Sheriff Gobble.   

        He emphasized that law enforcement’s use of computer technology necessitates access to criminal data that is gathered by state and federal governments.           

        As part of the booking process, the correction staff routinely checks the names of individuals to see if they are listed in the database with outstanding charges in other jurisdictions.

        The network is for law enforcement use, and cannot be accessed by the public.