Pennsylvania SAVIN Expansion-Courts

The Statewide Automated Victim Information and Notification (SAVIN) program ensures victims of crime receive accurate and timely information regarding the status of offenders and events related to their case. Through SAVIN, victims are able to participate in the judicial process and make sound decisions to protect themselves from further victimization while maintaining total anonymity. This information-sharing capability is also available to courts, corrections, and law enforcement officials.

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania will use the FY 2008 Statewide Automated Victim Information and Notification (SAVIN) award to expand its notification system to inform a crime victim of the offender's court case events. Presently, victims may register for notification of changes in an inmate's status and/or other related events while incarcerated in State and county correctional facilities but are unable to receive notification of court events. This SAVIN grant will fund a Court Notification Project to inform victims of the judicial proceedings for the 80,000 inmates in 89 State and county correctional facilities and approximately 360,000 parolees. The Commonwealth's goal is to allow victims to register just once at a single point of access to remain informed of the offender's status while being processed through in different phases of courts, corrections, and probation. The Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD) will assume the role of grant recipient and managing agency with responsibility for the oversight of the project. The PCCD will work with the current SAVIN Governance Committee to ensure consistency for registrations and notifications, and economies through coordination of project activities. The PCCD will look to the Victims Services Advisory Committee and the Criminal Justice Advisory Committee to assist in policy and governance issues. The PCCD will approve subgrantees to oversee the implementation and operation of PA Court Notification Project. Finally, the PCCD will continue to monitor the program as it moves beyond the grant period into sustainment.

CA/NCF