NUECES COUNTY – After KRIS 6 News aired a story last week about a glitch in an online service for crime victims, advocates are coming forward with their frustrations and concerns.
“There’s a lot of sleepless nights,” Sharon Sedwick said.
Sedwick’s daughter Jennifer was murdered in August of 2005. Since then, Sedwick receives email alerts about the status of her daughter’s incarcerated killer and his accomplice.
“I get an email any time the two people that were involved in our case are moved from prison to prison, or are coming up for a hearing. Whatever it is, I get an email,” Sedwick said.
Sedwick gets her VINELink alerts through the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. However, until there’s a conviction at the state level, crime victims must rely on their county for offender information.
However, in recent months, a malfunction has kept that resource from Nueces County crime victims.
Sedwick fears that if this malfunction isn’t addressed soon, the damage could be catastrophic.
“My concern is that somebody is going to lose their life,” Sedwick said.
The Nueces County District Attorney’s office, county commissioners, and VINELink representatives point the finger at a software issue. A spokesperson for the county’s IT office said there is a miscommunication with the manufacturer of a computer program called “Odyssey.” KRIS 6 News reached out to that company for comment, but did not hear back.
Crime victims said this period of waiting in limbo is unacceptable.
“Are we going to let somebody die over a computer glitch?,” Sedwick said.
KRIS 6 News spoke to a county commissioner about the issue who said he planned to spend Wednesday afternoon working with Nueces County’s IT department to resolve the glitch.
As of now, there is no time frame on when crime victims can expect a resolution.
