Florida Department of Corrections
Michael D. Crews, Secretary

The Corrections website was first brought online in 1995 and in October 1997 it was moved to its permanent home at: www.dc.state.fl.us, which is a web server operated by the DC. At the time of this move, the website was averaging approximately 350,000 hits from 7,500 visitors each month. After the Inmate Population Search came online in March 1998, traffic increased by 400%. We are now receiving approximately 2.2 million hits from 26,000 visitors each month.

Since its inception, the site has been garnering awards from such household names as Microsoft and YAHOO!. Here is a sampling of awards won in the last year or so: YAHOO! Pick of the Week on May 25, 1998, USA TODAY Hot Site award on April 28, 1998, Lycos TOP 5% rating in February 1998, named Microsoft "Outstanding Justice website" in June 1997, named "an excellent resource" by the Corrections Connection, received the "Digital Government Award of Excellence" on April 27, 1998.

• Records of Released Inmates Placed Online in October 1997 (www.dc.state.fl.us/inmatereleases/inmatesearch.asp)
  

  The first component of the Corrections Offender Network was made available to the public in October 1997 in response to the Public Safety Information Act of 1997 (www.leg.state.fl.us/citizen/ documents/statutes/1997/ch0944/e606__.htm), which required providing the public with information about certain inmates upon release. Victims are now able to track an inmate's release from the comfort of their home or office after receiving a release notification. Law Enforcement agencies are now able to monitor the release of inmates who were committed from, or are returning to, their jurisdiction. The Inmate Release Search allows users to search for released inmates by name, number, sex, race, release type (Lynce Case, Britt Case, and sex offender), release dates, offense type, and by the county to which they are reportedly released. In addition, the department began electronically transmitting color photos, and the supporting data (for both incarcerated and those on probation/parole), to Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) for inclusion on their website.

• Records of Inmates in Prison and Inmate Escapees Made Available Online in March 1998
  ( www.dc.state.fl.us/activeinmates/inmatesearch.asp and www.dc.state.fl.us/escapedinmates/inmatesearch.asp )
  

  The Inmate Population Search provides similar search capabilities as the release application and contains current and prior criminal history, current location, and projected release date. The data is updated weekly except for current location and release date, which is updated daily.

  	Want to look an inmate up online? Go to www.dc.state.fl.us/ activeinmates/ inmatesearch.asp. The web-based Corrections Offender Network contains three components: active population, released inmates and escapees. Color photographs and detailed information is available for more than 96,700 inmates.

  The Inmate Population application is the most popular area of our website, averaging over 50,000 visits per month. Reporters have written to say they find this service useful and that it has lessened the number of phone calls required to obtain accurate information. Numerous victims have written to let us know how reassuring it was to be able to monitor release dates. Over 64,000 inmate photographs were processed from over 100 facilities throughout the state, completing three quality assurance reviews, in order to bring the Inmate Population system online.

  The Inmate Escape application lists those who have escaped since January 1990 and are still at large with outstanding warrants. Escape circumstances, color photographs, identifying marks and criminal history is provided. Law enforcement agencies throughout the state can print escape notices directly from our website. Escapee Jessie Hamilton Adams was recaptured in New Orleans after a citizen recognized him from his photograph and tattoos seen on our website.

• Enhanced Versions Provided to Law Enforcement
  

  An enhanced version of all three systems was made available to law enforcement agencies through FDLE's CJNet in June 1998. This is a closed network that is only available to law enforcement agencies. The enhancements include identification marks, physical characteristics, work skills, criminal and escape histories.

At the end of June 1998 there were more than 60 reports and articles on our website as well as addresses (email and mailing), phone numbers, organizational information, employment information, and other resources. This information totals approximately 900 web pages. The following table shows the most popular reports and articles.