CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) - West Virginia launched an electronic domestic violence registry Monday that should end a potential deadly delay in the flow of information from the courts to law enforcement.
With $980,000 from state and federal sources, all court systems throughout the state by fall should be able to scan copies of protection orders into a statewide database minutes after judges sign them. The database will be accessible to law enforcement but not the public.
It will allow officers instant access to information about alleged abusers that until now could take hours or even a day to get into the National Crime Information Center, an electronic database for information including outstanding warrants and criminal charges, said Angela Saunders, director of court services.
That lapse in time between when protection orders are signed and when they appear in the national database could have dire consequences for some victims, authorities said.
"If there was one thing that you could point your finger at and say that this will save someone's life, it will be the registry," Marshall County Sheriff John Gruzinskas said in a statement.
Lynn Atkinson, whose 22-year-old daughter Leanda was shot to death by her live-in boyfriend in front of the couple's daughter five years ago, said the registry may help ensure that no one else suffers like her family.
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"If there was one thing that you could point your finger at and say that this will save someone's life, it will be the registry," Marshall County Sheriff John Gruzinskas said in a statement.
While it would not have prevented her daughter's death because she did not seek court protection, Atkinson said it could help others.
"I'm so grateful that this is in place," Atkinson said at a news conference at the state Capitol. "This is one huge step."
Saunders said many states have such registries. What's unique about West Virginia's is that court officials are immediately scanning the orders into the database.
Having the original orders in the new database will also save time by eliminating the need for police to call a courthouse. Under the current system, an officer who responds to a domestic violence call and finds a protection order listed in the NCIC has to verify that information with the original source, but that can take time because court records aren't accessible 24 hours a day, Saunders said.
Immediate access to court orders also will help avoid any confusion about what the order says, who issued it and whether it is still in effect, she said.
Advocates who help domestic violence victims say the registry is long overdue and was a collaboration between federal, state and county offices.
The state Legislature ordered the West Virginia State Police to create a statewide registry in 2001, but the effort was stymied by a lack of funding and staff, and by outdated and incompatible computer systems.
An $815,000 grant from the federal government and $165,000 from the state Supreme Court helped overcome those challenges.
"Getting there was tough, but we got there," said Supreme Court Administrator Steve Canterbury.
Magistrate courts in nine counties - Clay, Grant, Hardy, Jackson, Monongalia, Nicholas, Raleigh, Summers and Wayne - are already scanning documents, Saunders said. Other counties and family court systems will be added weekly as they complete training, update equipment and become proficient at entering the orders into the database.
All counties should be participating by fall.
"This is a huge accomplishment not just for the courts, not just for State Police, but for victims and potential victims of domestic violence," Saunders said.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.
