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Indiana SAVIN 2009: Enhancements to Indiana SAVIN System

Award Information

Award #
2009-VN-CX-0015
Location
Congressional District
Status
Closed
Funding First Awarded
2009
Total funding (to date)
$499,995

Description of original award (Fiscal Year 2009, $499,995)

The Statewide Automated Victim Information and Notification (SAVIN) program (authorized by Pub.L. 111-8, and guided in part by the general principles of 42 U.S.C. §10603e) ensures victims of crime receive accurate and timely information regarding the status of offenders and events related to their cases. 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 Indiana Department of Corrections (IDOC) will use its SAVIN award to enhance the Indiana SAVIN service by expanding the system to incorporate protective orders, adding offender photos for 28 Indiana counties thus allowing victims to verify that they are registering for the correct offender, and revamping their web site. These actions will increase the safety and security of crime victims and concerned citizens.

To incorporate protective orders, IDOC will develop an e-mail notification system for victims requesting protective orders and create a public website for accessing protective order information. Furthermore, by revamping the website and the IDOC's Offender Locator site, this enhancement will provide victims with one site for all victim and offender-related information.

IDOC will also enhance its system by allowing victims to be notified via phone or website of custody status changes that occur while offenders are on probation. Notifications on the 55,000 probationers statewide are currently done manually, and the new automatic notifications will improve the timeliness of victims' notifications.

IDOC will also develop and implement a tool that will provide mechanisms for matching and transferring registrations, which will eliminate the need for victims to re-register with Indiana SAVIN when the offender moves from court to jail and then under the Department of Corrections.

Lastly, IDOC will host training and promotional activities to increase awareness of Indiana SAVIN and these enhancements. They will also create new promotional materials that will incorporate the enhancements.

CA/NCF

Date Created: July 27, 2009