Florida officials are reviving an old initiative to solve cold cases by distributing thousands of playing cards in jails and prisons, hoping tro "generate new leads and insights from inmates," the state Attorney General's Office announced Monday, USA Today reports. More than 5,000 decks of playing cards that contain photographs and information about unsolved homicide and missing person cases will be issued to correctional facilities across Florida, over 60 county jails overseen by local sheriffs and 145 sites overseen by the state’s Department of Corrections.
"We're pleased to announce a special initiative, which hasn't been done here in the state of Florida statewide in about 15 years, but it's something that we know (works)," said Florida Association of Crime Stoppers President Frank Brunner. "This was the right time to create and distribute another deck of cold case homicide playing cards into Florida's jails and prisons, and certainly we will also have them available online in some other media form as well." The new version of cold case playing cards is part of Attorney General Ashley Moody's efforts to prevent violent crime and solve homicides. Since 2019, Moody as been working to enlist the public's help in solving cold cases. In 2020, Moody and the Florida Association of Crime Stoppers launched a statewide anonymous tipline. Officials significantly increased reward money for anonymous tips, "nearly doubling the amount for tips on unsolved homicides," Moody said.