Pennsylvania Receives Federal Funding for Notification System

HARRISBURG, Pa. — Pennsylvania is the latest state to implementing a notification system that alerts residents when an inmate escapes or is released from a county jail.

Funded by a $1.25 million grant from the U.S. Department of Justice, the Statewide Automated Victim Information and Notification System is expected to be fully operational in 12 to 18 months. Residents will be able to register with the automated system via telephone, e-mail or regular mail to find out when offenders are incarcerated, where they are held, and when they are released.

“All Pennsylvania residents could take advantage of SAVIN,” said Gov. Edward Rendell, following the announcement of the plan to implement the system. “For parents, this notification system would tell them when someone in their neighborhood has been arrested for mistreating a child or possessing drugs. By simply registering, parents will be notified when this offender is released from custody.”

The system will be used in 61 counties, beginning with Philadelphia, Allegheny, Chester, Dauphin, Cumberland, Lancaster, Lehigh and Erie. Nearly 46 percent of the state’s jail population is housed in jurisdictions where the system will be used.

The state’s Commission on Crime and Delinquency, which will work with county jail administrators to obtain accurate information, will administer the system.

“The success of this program will be based upon the willingness and ability of county jails to provide quality information about the movement of an inmate,” Rendell says.

The new system will complement the state’s existing system, the Victim Information and Notification Everyday program, which notifies crime victims about offenders within the state Department of Corrections and the state Board of Probation and Parole.

Pennsylvania is one of 16 states to receive federal funding for the notification system.