Millions of lives affected by stalking each year

LOUISVILLE, Ky., Jan. 8, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Every year more than six-and-a-half million people in the U.S. are victims of stalking. That's just one of many sobering facts about stalking in this country, including:

• 1 in 6 women and 1 in 19 men have been stalked during their lifetime
• 66% of female stalking victims are stalked by a current or former intimate partner
• 46% of stalking victims experience at least one unwanted contact per week
• 1 in 8 victims lose time from work

January is National Stalking Awareness Month, an annual push to focus attention on stalking that was launched ten years ago by the National Center for Victims of Crime.

"Combating stalking and the violence that too often results from it is one of the reasons Appriss exists," said Appriss CEO Michael Davis. "The company traces its roots to our VINE^®  (Victim Information and Notification Everyday) program, which lets crime victims check on the status of their offender and register to be notified about any change in that status. Many times stalkers are people who committed a previous crime against the victim and begin stalking the victim after they are released from jail. With VINE, victims have the opportunity to take safety precautions."

VINE was created after the 1993 murder of Mary Byron, a Louisville, KY woman who was stalked, ambushed and shot to death by an ex-boyfriend who had been jailed for raping her and later released without her knowledge.

Another component of VINE will alert individuals who take out a protective order when that order is served, again allowing them to put a safety plan in place if necessary.

Appriss also provided the initial funding to launch the Mary Byron Project, a non-profit organization dedicated to ending domestic violence, which all too frequently is accompanied by stalking.

Additional information about stalking is also available at www.stalkingawarenessmonth.org.

About Appriss
Appriss helps keep communities safe and informed by using innovative technology to provide a suite of products that: inform crime victims of an offender's status (VINE^® and VINEmobile™); help police catch criminals (JusticeXchange^®); improve traffic safety and make crash reports available online (BuyCrash.com); and prevent the illegal sale of pseudoephedrine to help reduce the number of meth labs (NPLEx™).  Appriss also provides a smartphone app for sheriffs' offices to help them communicate more effectively with their communities. The MobilePatrol™ app is provided at no cost to sheriffs who offer VINE.

For more information visit www.appriss.com.

SOURCE Appriss