|
|
|
With the recent creation of their new website, Fairfax County Crime Solvers has tapped into the latest technology available for receiving anonymous tips. Tipsters may now give their information via texting or e-mail using state-of-the-art software purchased through Anderson Software. Texting is a popular form of communication for the younger generation and Fairfax County Crime Solvers hopes to open that line of communication with them. Previously, tipsters were limited to calling a phone number. This new software opens the door for Crime Solver programs and interfaces these newer forms of communication with tip-taking. It enables tipsters to communicate through a secure server that blocks their identity. Thus, tipsters are able to relay vital information from anywhere they can send text or e-mail messages and at any time. In addition, their new website provides current information on wanted persons, news releases, suspects caught in the act and upcoming events. This site is continually updated. It was designed with the user in mind and provides a means to stay current with the latest efforts of the Crime Solvers Board. Fairfax County Crime Solvers is the first in the Washington Metropolitan region to implement this new texting and e-mail software. Other programs in the nation that currently use it have seen a sharp increase in the number of tips received. Fairfax County Crime Solvers is a non-profit 501C3 organization comprised of business leaders and citizens throughout the area. They provide a venue for those with knowledge of a criminal act to report information without the fear of retaliation. Their tip lines are protected under law. The Fairfax County Crime Solvers’ Board of Directors invites you to visit their new website at www.fairfaxcrimesolvers.org. Those who wish to report information may now utilize one of the three methods available: • By phone – Call 1-866-411-TIPS/8477 and follow the voice prompts to Fairfax County • By e-mail – visit www.fairfaxcrimesolvers.org and click on the secure link to communicate back and forth. • By texting – Text “TIP187” plus
your message to CRIMES/274637 |
|
|
2.2-3706. Disclosure
of criminal records; limitations.
E. The identity of
any individual providing information about a crime or criminal activity under a
promise of anonymity shall not be disclosed.
B. Evidence of a communication or any information contained therein between a person submitting a report of an alleged criminal act to a “Crime Stoppers” organization and the person who accepted the report on behalf of the organization is not admissible in a court proceeding. Law-enforcement agencies receiving information concerning alleged criminal activity from a “Crime Stoppers” organization shall maintain confidentiality pursuant to subsection E of 2.2-3706.
15.2-1713.1. Local “Crime Stoppers” programs; confidentiality. A. As used in this section, a “Crime Stoppers,” “Crime Solvers,” “Crime Line,” or other similarly named organization is defined as a private, nonprofit Virginia corporation governed by a civilian volunteer board of directors that is operated on a local or statewide level that (i) offers anonymity to persons providing information to the organization, (ii) accepts and expends donations for cash rewards to persons who report to the organization information about alleged criminal activity and that the organization forwards to the appropriate law-enforcement agency, and (iii) is established as a cooperative alliance between the news media, the community, and law-enforcement officials.
