• Women at risk to receive SMS messages before attackers released from jail
• Program alerts gender-violence victims to change in attacker’s detention status
Thousands of women victims of domestic abuse and gender violence across Spain are to begin receiving text alerts to their mobile phones whenever their jailed abuser becomes eligible for a change in his detention status, is paroled or about to leave prison, according to Spanish police authorities.
As part of a nine-year-old program set to signficantly expand this month, around 4,000 women who have been assaulted or otherwise abused and who are worried that once released from prison their male attacker will try to find them again to assault or even kill them and their children will receive SMS alerts letting them know of the anticipated change in a detainee’s status in prison.
Even if such changes in status of prisoners occur in relation to convictions for other offenses unrelated to gender violence, the women will be notified because of the high rate of re-incidence among men convicted of gender violence and domestic abuse following their release from prison.
The program is being expanded partly in response to a number of high-profile cases in recent years in Spain, in which mean serving time in jail for gender violence and other offenses have upon release hunted down the same women in order to assault and, in some cases, murder them.
► Read More in Spanish at Europa Press and El Mundo …
