Safely ensconced in the local Bastille, for the time being, unable to make the half-million dollar bond set by Lancaster County Court Judge Mary Doyle (he'll need 10% of that, or $50,000). As in any criminal case this can change, though, as bonds get reviewed, mom's get second mortgages, and cases progress. It can be a considerable task to follow a defendant through the criminal justice system.
Knowing who's in, who's out, and what's up is hard enough for the police, but can be next to impossible for a crime victim or the general public. A few years ago, however, it got a lot easier in 40 States.
VINE (Victim Information and Notification Everyday) is a service that allows the general public to find information about the custody status of an offender. You can also register to receive telephone and email notification when a change in custody status occurs. It's free, easy, and keeps you up-to-date about who's on first.
This is one of several free or cheap, easy, and effective research tools that have popped up in recent years as the Internet has caused some obscure and arcane public records to be suddenly accessible. If I think about it, I'll introduce a few more in my blog now and then.
Since Ricky's off the road for a while, we've been trying to interest the local press in other nominees (we've got plenty), but so far, no one has captured their imagination.
Perhaps a board game like monopoly. You could have Turco and a host of others as the tiles. Retired police as the game pieces. And put all the bad cops faces on the community chest cards. All the good cops faces on the CHANCE cards. Boardwalk could be replaced with hoe hut....13th and E and park Place would be a brothal.
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