MARY'S STORY
The Mary Byron Project is named in honor of a woman whose time was cut short.
Mary was a daughter and a friend. She was a beloved co-worker of her fellow hairdressers at a salon in a Louisville, Kentucky shopping mall. She also was a victim of terrible violence and of horrific crimes.
Mary had been raped, assaulted, and stalked by her former boyfriend in late 1993. He was arrested and jailed for these crimes, but someone posted his bail and he was released. There was no way for Mary to know.
After leaving work on the evening of December 6, 1993, Mary sat in her car as it warmed up. Her former boyfriend approached from the driver's side and fired seven bullets into her head and chest at point blank range, killing her. It was Mary’s 21st birthday.
In Jefferson County, Kentucky, where Mary lived, the community was stunned and outraged. County officials and software engineers worked long and diligently to design a system that would let crime victims know whether their offenders are in jail, where they are held, and when they are released. County Judge/Executive Dave Armstrong made this a top priority, and led the effort.
Exactly one year after Mary’s murder, Jefferson County became the first community to institute automated telephone notification for crime victims and other concerned citizens. That system is VINE® (Victim Information and Notification Everyday), now used in thousands of communities across the nation.
John Byron, Mary's father, couldn't help but think about what might have been. After VINE was introduced, he said, "If only they'd had this a year ago, Mary would be alive."
"If only…" Time and time again, these words are uttered across our nation. Yet, solutions are within our grasp. The Mary Byron Project was established with that quest in mind.
