Imagine being able to pinpoint potential suspects within a radius of any crime scene. Imagine being able to track offenders 24 hours a day, narrow suspect pools based on accurate technology, and possibly even deter offenders from committing new crimes. For probation officers in California, this concept is a new reality.

In early October, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger passed a law allowing county probation chiefs the ability to use global positioning (GPS) devices on parolees – without court orders. Currently, Orange County officials are preparing to put the legislation to use, and are putting bids out for manufacturers to develop the GPS technology into electronic bracelets and anklets.

The new technology is anticipated to save hundreds of hours worth of investigation time.

“Because of this technology, we can truly pinpoint where suspects are located,” says Vicki Mathews, legislative analyst for the Orange County Department of Probation. “If there is a crime committed – like a sexual crime – we can pinpoint which offenders were in that location, and therefore figure out who our main suspects are.”

Many corrections officers support the bill, citing that their biggest concern is public safety. Meanwhile, organizations like the American Civil Liberties Union are concerned that the GPS tracking units are limiting the privacy rights of offenders. Those who oppose the bill argue that while GPS systems are fine for repeat or sex offenders, they are not necessary for those who commit lesser offenses.

Mathews, on the other hand, maintains that the deterrent factor is crucial – and is one of the biggest reasons the legislation succeeded.

“According to the research done in Florida corrections – and they have been a pioneer in this technology – the deterrent factor is huge,” Mathews says. “They saw excellent results because offenders were constantly reminded that someone was keeping an eye on them.”

For Orange County, this technology is especially important to ensure safety for both the general public and corrections officers.

Public Safety and New Technology

Mathews says that the Orange County Department has been working on passing this legislature for years, but only introduced this particular concept at the beginning of 2005.

According to Mathews, although the implementation of the GPS system is only in the initial stages, the Orange County department has $75,000 allotted for the start-up of the program. The California corrections department currently uses black ankle devices with antennae to track paroled offenders. These devices are manufactured by a Texas company called Satellite Tracking of People (STP). STP is one of the largest vendors in the monitoring market, which is expanding rapidly.

Mathews says that the only reason the new GPS technology hasn't been put into place sooner is the time consuming process of reading through bids and finding a manufacturer.

Probation officials realize that offender rights advocates are skeptical about the implementation of the technology on those with relatively minor offenses, but they feel the benefits outweigh the concerns.

 “In Orange County, there are 22,000 people in the parole system. When people ask me about their privacy rights, I can only say this - sometimes, these offenders are people who are sitting at the dinner table next to you in a restaurant – and these aren't people that just write a bad check,” Mathews says. “Personally, I'd like to have this technology in place for my own safety.”

Two Sides of Legislation

Those opposed to the legislature were concerned further when statements released from Gov. Schwarzenegger seemed to support even more control over parolees. Schwarzenegger recently proposed that registered sex offenders who were convicted on a felony charge should wear the GPS bracelets for the rest of their lives. But Mathews maintains that public safety should be the number one concern.

“There are really two parts to this legislation,” Mathews says. “The part that affects probation officers and the part that affects parolees. And mostly, we are interested in the part that affects the officers. Public safety and the safety of the community is our central concern, and this is a tool that will further ensure the safety of our communities.”

Another aspect of public safety for Mathews centers on sex offenders. Mathews states that when it comes to sex offenders, another dimension of crime needs to be addressed -and that these GPS systems can help to catch people who have committed sex crimes. But Mathews realizes that these systems are not a cure all.

“The good news is that as technology gets better, we hope to keep a closer eye on these offenders,” Mathews says. “But I want to caution that these technologies will obviously not solve every problem. It's just another way to help us catch and deter offenders.”

Despite some opposition the legislation, the state of California is looking ahead towards the development and use of the GPS systems and the Orange County Department of Probation is going full speed ahead as well.

“We are launching this as quickly as possible,” Mathews says. “We have to evaluate many proposals, and a panel of folks will be put together to review those proposals in an unbiased fashion. All of this takes time – but it's definitely begun, and our progress is underway.”