Rowlett Police to roll out Community Connect (SpiderTech) in March to send case updates and surveys

The Rowlett Police Department is testing Community Connect (formerly called SpiderTech), a communication platform from VersaTerm Public Safety USA that will send automated acknowledgements, case updates and victim notifications and collect post‑contact surveys, Chief Denning told the council. The department plans a full rollout in mid‑March after finishing testing and training.

Why it matters: The system will provide callers, reporting parties and crime victims with near‑real‑time text and email notifications tied to the department’s CAD and records management system, and it will trigger short satisfaction surveys to collect feedback for patrol, dispatch and investigative units.

How it works Lieutenant Domingo Gallardo (commander, Criminal Investigations Division) said the system has three modules: a CAD/patrol module, an investigative module, and an insights module that manages surveys and analytics. The workflow begins at the 9‑1‑1 or non‑emergency call: an acknowledgement message is sent soon after the call is created, updates are sent as the incident progresses, and, when an investigation or call closes, a survey can be triggered.

A demonstration slide shown to councilors included bilingual (English/Spanish) SMS messages with hyperlinks to resources and an online victim portal. Gallardo said the system can be configured to provide links to the department’s website, online reporting, and victim‑services resources. He said the vendor is preparing Spanish and English templates for the city’s messages.

Sensitive calls and muting Chief Denning and Gallardo emphasized safety controls: dispatchers will be able to mute notifications for call types that could present safety risks (for example, some domestic‑violence incidents), and certain call types are default‑muted. Dispatchers can also enter a code word to mute notifications in an active call.

Automation and workload impacts Staff represented that the system is highly automated and does not require officers to interact with it during typical patrol responses. Gallardo said the only required information is a phone number; once the call is entered into CAD the system generates the acknowledgement and follow‑up messages. The department plans to train officers and dispatchers before launch to ensure staff understand the workflow and the types of calls for which notifications should be suppressed.

Timetable and public outreach Gallardo and Chief Denning said testing was underway and they expected a mid‑March full rollout, with staff using social media and possibly a press release to notify the public. Denning said the system will help reduce routine follow‑up calls to dispatch and detectives and allow the department to collect service‑level analytics over time.

Ending The council received the update as informational. No formal procurement action was requested at the meeting; staff said they would finish testing, complete training and return to operating the system live in March.