Santa Fe police have implemented a new program for keeping an eye on criminals convicted for property crimes using GPS tracking devices. It is the first program like it in the state of New Mexico, and officials believe it is the most effective way to fight against repeat offender burglars. ?It?s kind of the future of law enforcement and tracking individuals,? states Aric Wheeler, captain of the Santa Fe Police.
GPS monitoring of sex offenders is currently in place in the state, but this will be the first time burglars will be tracked. The department plans to start out the program with only five GPS devices, and will decide which criminals are ?consistently convicted of committing burglaries,? with the help of the District Attorney?s office. Only those with open court cases will be reviewed. As the Department of Corrections already has a contract with the 3M company who manufactures the devices, there will be no additional cost to the city.
After court proceedings, the offender will have to sign off on an agreement for ?Intensive Supervision Probation with GPS monitoring,? and further that they ?understand and consent to unrestricted monitoring? by Santa Fe police. Once this agreement is reached and the paperwork is signed, police are able to check the whereabouts of the criminal.
Sgt. Peter Neal states that this is not in real-time, there will be a little bit of lag receiving data, probably a couple of minutes. However, if police have the suspicion the subject is in the middle of a burglary, they can call the monitoring company and ?request live tracking.?
Both Wheeler and Neal agree that this is a positive way to prevent burglary sprees as they can now look at where a crime has occurred and where a prior offender was at the time the crime took place.? They state the police, being out on the road every day patrolling problem neighborhoods, will be better suited for monitoring the offenders than the Probation and Parole department typically in charge of monitoring.
Police claim this is best for both law enforcement and criminal alike. How is this possible? ?It?s a way for you to stay out of jail,? states Neal. ?It?s a way for them to get out and avoid a short prison stint.? Basically, if you sign away your privacy, you get off without having to do a day in jail, keeping the cells empty for more serious offenders. However, not everyone is in agreement.
A couple of defense attorneys have been vocal about their feelings on the matter. They feel that the program will only work with those who can truly change. They bring up the point that most clients will sign the agreement without really thinking about what they are getting themselves into merely to stay out of jail. ?A defense attorney better be pretty confident in their ability to amend their ways,? says Public Defender Joseph Campbell. ?These guys are already earmarked for the front door of prison. They?re not being asked to do this because they?re the best of the best. They?re being asked to do this because you?re considered the worst of the worst.? He also doubts the Constitutionality of the program.
Defense attorney Tom Clark, agreeing that it seems like bad news for offenders, also wonders why the police department would take on such a task with all they already have to do. Secondly, he foresees accusations of misconduct in their future.
In the opinion of this author, the program is a bad idea simply because these are people who would otherwise be in jail. If someone has been convicted of burglary multiple times, why should they be given a second, third, or fourth chance? The monitoring idea makes a bit of sense, but goes against the guaranteed right to privacy our Constitution grants us. Police will be able to see where you are at all times, even in the comfort of your own home or at work. It is agreed that GPS tracking is a great tool for law enforcement when used properly, but I feel this is a far cry from what should be an acceptable use of it. Officials should take a long, hard look at the program and tweak it a bit before putting it into place.
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/gps_tracking/~3/3qVN_fI61MQ/
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