Mary had been raped, assaulted, and stalked by her former boyfriend in late 1993. He was arrested and jailed for these crimes, but someone posted his bail, and he was released. There was no way for Mary to know.
On the evening of December 6, 1993, Mary sat in her car as it warmed up after leaving her job at the Mall St. Matthews. Her former boyfriend approached from the driver’s side and fired seven bullets into her head and chest at point blank range, killing her. It was Mary’s 21st birthday.
The community was stunned and outraged. County officials and engineers worked diligently to design a system that would let crime victims know whether their offenders are in jail, where they are held, and when they are released.
Exactly one year after Mary’s murder, Jefferson County became the first community to institute automated telephone notification for crime victims and other concerned citizens. That system is VINE™ – Victim Information and Notification Everyday, now used in thousands of communities across the nation.
The VINE service provides information by phone, email, TTY, and text message where available. You may also sign up through your participating state, or county’s toll-free number. VINELink can be accessed 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to provide the most reliable information for custody status changes and criminal case information. Victims can check the status of an offender day or night.
To learn more about the VINE System in Arkansas, read our article, Arkansas Vine System.
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