Crime-Victim Alert System Starts
Crime victims in Utah will be able check on a perpetrator’s incarceration status by telephone through the Victim Information and Notification Everyday (VINE) program, which went into operation on Aug. 20.
Victims can also receive automatic updates when the prisoner is relocated, paroled, released, escapes, dies, or moves to a lower security classification.
Computer and technical issues delayed the Office of Crime Victim Reparations-funded initiative by almost a year.
The system also can direct victims toward resources where they can learn about parolee rules and their options to protect themselves.
Utah Department of Corrections administrator of victim services Sharon Daurelle says that the previous notification system was confusing and required contacting two separate agencies.
For the moment, VINE is restricted to state inmates in penitentiaries or county lockups, but Daurelle says funding has been secured to expand the program to include state parolees and county inmates within the next 12 months.
Abstracted by the National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center(NLECTC) from the Salt Lake Tribune (08/20/03) P. B2; Broughton, Ashley.
