New Democrats have long supported a criminal justice system that pays attention to the behavior of offenders before they are arrested and after they serve their time. That's why crime prevention and post-prison supervision are part of the New Democrat crime-fighting arsenal, along with community policing and tough but intelligent sentencing.

The victim's rights movement has long been the most powerful voice for a greater focus on the damage criminals inflict on the community, not just the State. But until recently, policymakers have mainly limited the rights of crime victims to a say in sentencing decisions. Under the leadership of Lt. Gov. Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, Maryland is moving towards a systematic link between victims' rights and supervision of criminals through a 24-7 service that keeps victims informed of the status and location of their tormentors, before and after they do time.

Maryland is not the first state to join VINE (Victim Information and Notification Everyday), a private-sector information service pioneered in Kentucky in 1995. (VINE services are available in part or in whole in Kentucky, Ohio, Nebraska, Montana, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Virginia and Arkansas, and in specific counties scattered across other states). But Maryland is the first state to provide a comprehensive database of information on offenders that links the state corrections system, county jails, courts and prosecutors by computer network and makes the information instantly available to crime victims.

Already up and running in four counties and slated for statewide implementation later this year, VINE Maryland will enable crime victims, their families and friends, victim rights' advocates, and law enforcement officers to use a toll-free number at any time to obtain up-to-the-minute (updated every 10 minutes) information on particular offenders. It will include custody status, location of the facility where the offender is housed, release date and parole hearing dates, and upcoming court case information. Further, by registering with VINE, a crime victim will be automatically notified if the offender is released, is sent to home detention or work release, is re-arrested, escapes, dies, or is tried and sentenced.

"This puts Maryland at the cutting edge of the victim's rights movement," Townsend told The Washington Post, "because it says we will use technology to protect victims and give them the ability to be fully informed to protect themselves." It also keeps Maryland at the cutting edge of the national trend towards using technology to fight crime before and after the prison doors open and close.