Victims of crime in Marathon County soon might get phone or e-mail alerts letting them know their perpetrators are being released from the county jail.

The Marathon County Sheriff's Department is working with state officials to implement Wisconsin Victim Information and Notification Everyday, a program that provides information to victims on the status of the victim's offender.

The state Department of Corrections and 18 counties currently provide VINE to crime victims, said Jo Winston, director of victim services at the Department of Corrections. About half of the state's remaining 54 counties have shown interest in VINE, she said.

With VINE, victims can receive automated phone calls or e-mails updating them if an offender has posted bond, been transferred to another facility or completed a sentence. The victim also can call VINE to get the information. The service is free and available 24 hours a day. VINE gives victims an identification number upon registration to access the information and preserve anonymity.

Jessica Lind, who works with victims of sexual assault at The Women's Community in Wausau, said some crime victims are notified by jail staff members when offenders are released, but VINE could ensure victims are updated with the latest information.

"Anytime a system is put in place that would benefit a crime victim in which a person can feel safe or be updated is a benefit," Lind said.

The state received a $1.2 million grant last year to offset some of the cost for counties that set up VINE at their jails, Winston said. Counties would have some annual costs to maintain VINE, she said.

"Everyone thinks it's a good idea," Marathon County Jail Administrator Bob Dickman said. "The question is when and how do we do it, and the cost."

The county must figure out how to transfer the information from the county's computer system to VINE's database as well as how to fund the program, Dickman said. There are no cost estimates at this time, and the soonest VINE would be implemented is next year, he said.