State To Shadow Parolees With GPS

KingFish

Seven contractors have expressed interest in the state's $2.5 million pilot project that would use a global positioning system, or GPS, to keep track of violent sex offenders that have been paroled.

The tracking technology was first used in Florida in late 1990s to keep track of released felons, and some cities and counties in other states utilize GPS for similar uses. The Tennessee project will not be used statewide for at least a year after it begins early in 2005. It will be focused in Memphis and Nashville and other parts of the state's three grand divisions.

Good law enforcement to keep us safe or is it "Big Brother" going into areas he has no business being? This should stir some debate at the least. -KF

Source: eWeek

QCH

Good idea... In Illinois, you have 48 hrs to report to the state that you have moved, but some guy on the news moved and then raped and killed a girl even though the parents of the girl did a search for sex offenders in the area and he didn't show up...

If you HAVE to register, then make them register by GPS... You break the law, you pay the price.

Besides, GPS only locates you, it doesn't listen to your conversation, it doesn't prohibit you from doing anything, it just means they can find you and where you've been to assist in law enforcement...

- my 2 cents -

Omega65

Child Molesters rapist and other Sex Offenders are easy tragets, no o ne cares about them. But it wont stop there, Next it'll be active GPS monitoring in Cars. OnStar will really be On (all the time).

primesuspect

Here's my issue with this:

If we have to take these extraordinarily invasive measures to track people, just because they will "probably do it again", then that speaks volumes about the state of our criminal justice system. Instead of spending all this money and invading the privacy of a potentially innocent person, why don't we work harder to either imprison violent sex offenders on a longer term basis, or rehabilitate them if they can be? This is a band-aid measure that says "We can't fix the problem, so we'll just throw money at it".

QCH

I agree with Prime, in principle... unfortunately, our justice system is over taxed and unable to contain all the people that really should be incarcerated. The problem is how the term "Sexual Predator" is used. A family friend (19 at the time) was charged with a Class-X Felony and labeled a Sexual Predator... For what? He and a girl got drunk and then did the deed... She claimed (in front of more than 20 people) that she was 18, which she wasn't... she was 16. She was trying to get "some love'n" from ever guy at the party and our friend took the bait... Later she got angry at her mom and told her she had been raped by an older guy... So in comes the Police...

In the long run the charges were dropped when the mother of the girl and the girl didn't wanted charges filed but the states attorney pursued it. No one would testify for the States Attorney... he dropped all charges.

My point, if he would have been charged and found guilty, he would have been a sexual predator. Now, you put him in the same class as the sicko that messes with little girls and boys.... Not fair. But the court doesn't see a difference. You do the time and get out but you are labeled forever...

I'm mixed on the GPS, I guess....

KingFish

The rate of recitivism in molestation and child molestation cases is usually pretty high no matter what type of rehabilitation is tried. They aren't innocent people, they are convicts. I do see a problem with using this as a springboard with using GPS in other areas that it doesn't need to be going though. This will be a long debate for some time to come.

KF

Thrax

I agree with Prime on this issue. But at the same time, I also think the law needs to sincerely reconsider its consent laws.