For years, offenders have been supervised in the community through electronic monitoring devices. Recently, however, similar technology has worked its ways behind the prison walls to also monitor incarcerated offenders, providing the same level of security and accountability.

Elmo-Tech, an Israel-based company, has specialized in electronic monitoring since 1994 and offers correctional facilities worldwide such a solution. The Area Monitoring System (AMS) is a wireless inmate tracking system for use in correctional facilities that packages numerous applications into one technology.

"[The AMS] allows you to know who you have [number-wise in the facility] and more importantly who they are, with the ability to track them backwards in time if there is an incident," said Doron Yassur, Managing Director of Elmo-Tech. "It allows you to control your facility in a flexible, user-friendly, easy and cost-effective manner."

For use in a variety of atmospheres, from halfway houses to detention centers, the AMS allows real-time tracking of offenders and their locations, as well as the opportunity to monitor staff and guests.

"One of the benefits of the system is that you can start with [one application] and piggyback onto it [with another] because the infrastructure is the same," said Andrew Cohen, AMS Project Manager. "You can add [the ability] to safeguard officers and even bring into that more options for a duress [alarm] indicating where they are."

This versatility makes the system an interesting option to correctional agencies looking to control either one cell block or an entire unit, keeping tabs on everyone and everywhere within that area. 

Keeping a Computerized Eye on Everyone Inside

The AMS operates through several pieces of technology working in unison to constantly monitor activity in an institution. Throughout the designated area, a two-way, wireless network of compact Data Extension Units (DEUs) are situated and communicate signals to and from the transmitters worn by inmates and/or staff members.

The inmate transmitters are akin to the community supervision anklets the field has used for decades. Inside the institution, they constantly identify the wearer and his or her location, including areas they should and shouldn't be in.

The AMS features (from left to right), anklets for inmate use, wristwatches and a pager for staff or guest use and wireless DEUs. (Courtesy Elmo-Tech)

This is done through the use of "zones" created by the user and recognized by the Center Monitoring Station (CMS), which processes the information from the DEUs and transmitters and provides staff with instant alerts when inmates enter and exit the designated zones.

The exclusion zone is an area an inmate is not allowed to enter, such as an office or another cell in the facility. When an inmate enters these areas, the system alerts staff of this movement. The opposite of this is the inclusion zone where inmates are allowed to go and are expected to be in. Again, if they are not in this zone, the system activates an alarm for correctional staff.

The third zone is a neutral zone, where the system remains quiet until offenders move out of this zone. For example, an entire facility can be a neutral zone, with the system alerting staff if an offender tries to escape.

Alarms by the system can be received numerous ways and chosen by the user, said Cohen.

"Notification can occur first, by designating the system to send an event message such as 'x' inmate has taken his tag off in this location and that can be sent by fax or by pager or it can be sent by voice to a telephone number [where staff hear the message when they pick up the phone]," he said. "Secondly, you can have someone in the control room to handle incidents with every message being received as a pop-up [on screen] or as a sound so someone is aware of the alarm."

While offenders traditionally wear their transmitters as anklets, the system also allows for the monitoring of staff through the use of devises that look like wristwatches. These transmitters not only monitor location, but can also be developed to provide duress button and man-down functions as well.

"The duress alarm [indicates] the officer's location and identity so you know where they are and can re-direct resources to be available to him," said Cohen. "Also the tag [that] officers wear has a sensor that [alarms] if they don't move or are in a horizontal position for a set time."

By monitoring offenders and officers through the AMS, agencies can reap numerous rewards from increased security to cost savings.

Increasing Manpower, Savings Through the AMS

According to Yassur, one of the main benefits of the AMS - besides keeping staff members safe - is that correctional agencies can control what they need to in a more effective manner. One example is the ability to save time and man-hours conducting head counts.

"They can sit in an office and see the number of inmates [in the facility or unit] instead of using time for head counts," he said. "Instead of 10 to 20 man-hours [used lining up and counting offenders] they can look at the screen. If somebody disappears, they know where they are and who to look for [versus just knowing the count is off]."

While the system won't prevent inmates from trying to escape, he adds, it can assist in recovering them easier. Also, by being able to go back into the system and track their movement, staff can learn where they were minutes earlier.

One of the other unique aspects of the AMS is that it is an active system, meaning it reports locations and identities in real time. This way, the user knows which inmate is wearing which transmitter and the system knows where they are supposed to be as opposed to a passive system.

"With passive systems you carry cards or something else to indicate you are reporting to a designated post [in the facility]," said Yassur. "You only track [the inmate] when they report themselves. The problems with this are that you don't give information in real time and, secondly, you never know who is giving you information. I can give my card to someone else and tell them to swipe it indicating I am in the dining hall [and a passive system] will never know."

Additionally, as opposed to other active systems which monitor inmates, the AMS is wireless. This means easier and more cost effective installation in correctional facilities.

"You don't need to retrofit [a facility] or install cables," said Yassur. "Most facilities are not new and can't afford to evacuate [inmates] to retrofit. Our system delivers information and is wireless, providing huge, huge cost savings [to install]."

Yassur adds that installation normally involves a site visit by Elmo-Tech, which works with officials to determine where to place the DEUs and locate a source of electricity for them and then actual installation, which can take a few days. This is opposed to other systems that can take four to six months to install, he said.

In the United States, the Minnesota Department of Corrections is one agency using the AMS and experiencing some of the benefits Yassur indicates.

Monitoring Offenders On the Move

At the Minnesota Correctional Facility (MCF) - Faribault, 136 minimum-custody security inmates are housed in a converted state hospital behind a single perimeter fence. Many of these inmates also report to employment assignments outside the perimeter during the work day, meaning they move in and out of the facility, which is located near a residential area.

To monitor these inmates' movement, the Minnesota DOC implemented Elmo-Tech's AMS in January 2003, providing each of the 136 offenders with ankle bracelets worn 24 hours a day. Staff, however, are not tracked by the AMS and instead carry radios.

"We chose this technology because it was a cost-effective means to monitor minimum security-offenders," said Lou Stender, Associate Warden at MCF-Faribalt. "We were looking for technology that would give timely notification of any offenders leaving their designated work or living areas."

Stender adds that the introduction of the technology has been met with positive reactions by everyone involved. Staff are pleased with the system and the added security it provides, he said, and inmates have had no complaints since the initial installation.

While it is difficult to say whether the ankle bracelets are a physical deterrent to prevent bad behavior, Stender does admit that the newness of the system may be a factor and has not been challenged by the inmates so far.

"It is fair to say that offenders do not fully understand the capability of the system and do know that they are being monitored," he said. "We have had no significant disturbances or walkaways from [the minimum-security unit] since installation of the system."

According to Stender, the installation of the unit was relatively simple and within one week, staff were comfortable with the system. Installation by Elmo-Tech included hands-on training with staff and in most cases, electrical access for the strategically placed DEUs were readily available through nearby existing lighting.

As for the positives of the system, Stender says that it provides greater public safety through timely notification and continuous monitoring of offender location within the grounds of the facility. So far, the system has not produced any major problems besides a few false alarms due to radio interference, but there have been no instances of an offender leaving the grounds without an alarm.

Overall, he adds, the system has been very cost-effective for his unit and the DOC.

"We have redeployed staff as a result of the installation of this system," said Stender. "More than that, the cost of preventing one walk-away is a major savings in dollars and enhanced security for our surrounding community."

It is experiences like these that Yassur relies on to ensure future use of the AMS in more prisons in the United States and abroad. In fact, he thinks the system will revolutionize the business as its use increases.

"We see this system as the future and the future of correctional facilities," he said. "It first requires education [of corrections professionals] and we'll see more and more requests as they realize the benefits [of the system]."

Resources

For more information on Elmo-Tech's AMS and other technologies, go to www.elmotech.com.

Andrew Cohen, AMS Project Manager, Elmo-Tech, (800) 313-1483

Lou Stender, Associate Warden, MCF-Faribault, Minnesota Department of Corrections, (507) 334-0700

Doron Yassur, Managing Director, Elmo-Tech, (800) 313-1483.