By Elizabeth A. Elliott

Stemming from the tragic loss of a woman to the hands of her attacker after his release from jail, there are two notification systems that help victims know the status of their offenders— Victim Information and Notification Everyday (VINE) and Victim Notification System (VNS).

“Forty states now offer or will soon offer statewide automated victim information and notification (VINE),” said Rick Jones, director of Shared Services for Appriss, provider of the VINE service. “The VNS system is a Federal Victim Notification Service we provide through the U.S. Department of Justice.”

“We average more than 1.5 million calls a month and more than one million e-mails a month,” added Jones. “Our operators assist more than 87,000 calls a month.”

The system has undergone changes since it began as a strictly telephone service in 1994.

“It has been expanded to include e-mail notification,” said Jones. “Users can go on the Internet to find their offender.  The service is offered in a number of languages including Spanish, Yu'pik, Vietnamese, Japanese, Punjabi, to name a few.  We provide text messaging through VINE.”

Jones said that government officials are responsive to this program.

“It becomes another tool in their efforts to keep the public safe,” he said. “They have worked tirelessly to seek funding for the program and work to train law enforcement and victim service personnel so they can, in turn, inform the public.”

Two of the rights as listed in the Crime Victims' Rights Act for federal crime victims seem to speak to the importance of VNS and VINE. These are, “The right to be reasonably protected from the accused,” and “The right to reasonable, accurate, and timely notice of any public court proceeding, or any parole proceeding, involving the crime or of any release or escape of the accused.”

“Crime victims have the right to be notified of the custody and court status of their offender,” said Jones. “Keeping crime victims informed is its key directive.”

VINE keeps expanding, according to Jones.

“In recent years, we've added court notification,” he said.  Several states now provide the opportunity for citizens to be notified of upcoming court dates.  We are offering the service in a number of languages and the web site (vinelink.com) is now being offered in Spanish.”

He added, “We are constantly looking for new ways this service can help to serve and protect people and most efficiently communicate this imformation to the public, including SMS and text messaging.”

Jones explained how this program came about.

“In 1993, Mary Byron was raped by a former boyfriend who had held her captive. He was jailed for the crime awaiting trial when he posted bond and was released without her knowledge,” he said. “Two days later, he shoots and kills Mary as she leaves work on her 21st birthday.  Her death led to the creation of VINE almost one year later.”

When asked if VINE does protect victims, Jones said because it is an anonymous service, there isn’t a way to know who is actually using the service.

“However, we have heard over the years from individuals who believe their lives have been saved as a result of VINE,” he said. “The fact that we rarely hear otherwise tells us the service is working well.”

VNS is provided by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States Attorneys’ Offices, Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) and Office for Victims of Crimes. It works in cooperation with the United States Postal Inspection Service.

VINE is not available in all states, but there is an estimated 2,600 major communities across the country that has a VINE system, according to Jones.

“The main reason other states do not have it is money.  Especially in today's economy, state and local governments are struggling to maintain funding for programs such as these,” he said. “It's not that they don't want it, it is a matter of finding the dollars to make it happen.”

VNS provides free important information to victims of federal crimes. Forms of communication include letters, a call center and internet information. English and Spanish information is available on the internet and the call center.

In order to use the system, victims register for a Victim Identification Number (VIN) and Personal Identification Number (PIN). The call center provides information on future court hearings, past court hearings and detailed information on each defendant. This includes criminal charges filed, the outcome of the charges, and the sentence imposed by the court. Also, if the defendant is in the custody of BOP, information will be provided regarding the custody location, projected date of release from custody and other release information.

According to the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice, there are some criminal cases in Washington, D.C. that do not use the VNS due to it being impossible or not practical to use the service. In those cases, the updated information is provided on their website www.justice.gov/criminal/vns/. 

VINELink is the online version of VINE and victims and other concerned citizens can register for information. It is a free service to the public. Information is provided 24 hours a day for crime victims to obtain reliable information about criminal cases and the custody status of offenders.

VINE has no information on federal inmates and the history of the offender is not available. Offenders are deleted within two weeks of release off their information. For federal inmates, the Bureau of Prison website, www.bop.gov, has an “inmate locator” that one can look for information.

Originally known as Interactive Systems and The VINE Company, Appriss was founded in 1994 and provides software-based services to criminal justice agencies. VINE is their flagship product and it is now available in 46 states and more than 2,000 communities.

Mike Davis and Yung Nguyen founded Appriss a year after the murder of Mary Byron in Jefferson County, Kentucky by her former boyfriend in 1993. The company changed its name to Appriss in 2000 and the name is a derivative of “apprise” which means “to notify.” 

Emily Knezetic, Advocate Coordinator at the YWCA in Omaha, spoke about its impact as from an advocate’s perspective.

“The VINE program is a fantastic program and can offer a sense of safety for victims after their abuser has been arrested,” she said. “We offer this program to any victim that we work with who knows that their abuser has been arrested. This allows the victim to be notified with enough time to get to a safe place if their abuser gets released from a corrections center."

Knezetic said the clients really appreciate having the access to the program. “It offers them a peace of mind, because without this program a victim may not have any other way to know if their abuser is released,” she said.

Arksansas was one of the first states to use VINE statewide. Rick Stallings, field services manager for Arkansas Crime Information Center (ACIC), said that they notify on several different things, including release, escape, parole, bond.

“There are people who call in or log in every night,” he said. “It helps them know that the offender is still in custody or where they are at.”
Stallings said currently in Arksansas, there have been over 23,000 new registrations in their system this year.

“Since January there have been 321,263 searches for offenders or inmates,” he said. “Right now there are 27,303 current registrations and we have just 2.5 million people in the state.”

Arksansas has been using the VINE program for 11 years. Stallings said over the years they have added email notifications and last year added notifications for the hearing impaired.

Stallings said they do get feedback from people who have used the system and have one woman who has helped with public service announcements and has volunteered her story to be used.

Rachel Stone shared her story. Her son was murdered on July 9, 1997. She was given a card with VINE information and has kept it close ever since.

“I like to describe V.I.N.E. as my security blanket,” her statement reads. “It lets me sleep at night. I no longer need to feel as if I am helpless and no one can ever understand what my family and I have been thru and will continue to endure daily.”

A woman named Vicki, who used VINE to keep track of an inmate in Arkansas, expressed thanks for ACIC and VINE.

Her letter read, “You all have made it less difficult for me to deal with this situation and I truly appreciate your help.”