GPS confinement tested in Cabell
HUNTINGTON -- New technology being tested in Cabell County will help authorities better track criminal suspects and convicts, particularly sex offenders.
The county's home confinement and day report programs are trying approximately 15 global positioning system (GPS) units. The technology allows authorities to track the person's every move. Current home confinement units only track the person's comings and goings from the particular residence.
Cabell Circuit Judge Dan O'Hanlon is encouraging use of the GPS technology to complement an ongoing pilot program by the state Supreme Court. The state initiative hired five probation officers to provide extended supervision for sex offenders living in a seven-county region.
Cabell County's home confinement agency pushed to implement the new technology. Supporters say it makes the suspected criminal and his movements visible to law enforcement at all times. The current comings-and-goings system does not track where the person travels after leaving home.
Tracking that person becomes more difficult when the court allows him to work a job or attend church.
The GPS software also allows authorities to set exclusion zones for each person. For example, a sex offender would be excluded from visiting schools, parks or a past victim. The software would immediately alert authorities when the person approaches those boundaries.
Similar GPS technology has been tested in Kanawha County. O'Hanlon said it also has worked in other states. He is excited about the prospects.
"Current units only work within 150 feet of your telephone," he said. "The GPS units work no matter where you are ... It would give the victims a lot more peace of mind that someone would always be tracked."
O'Hanlon said the technology should be used to track a variety of criminals, and not just sex offenders.
For instance, O'Hanlon instructed Cabell County Home Confinement on Nov. 7 to place a tracking device on a tugboat worker who is serving time for a misdemeanor stolen property offense. He had violated probation with a positive drug screen. The man works on the river for weeks at a time. The GPS technology will allow him to work while the court tracks his every move. Otherwise time spent on the river would not count toward completing his sentence.
Cabell County Home Confinement Officer Tina Sarver said her agency had 12 people connected via GPS as of Nov. 7. They included 10 sex offenders, the tugboat worker and a murder suspect on bond awaiting trial.
The state Supreme Court appointed O'Hanlon as the lead judge for its pilot Sex Offender Intensive Supervision Program. He hopes simultaneous use of the GPS units will help him better inform the Supreme Court about the program's degree of success.
The sex offender pilot program was born out of the Legislature's Child Protection Act of 2006. It mandates the court system to hire probation officers to specialize in tracking sex offenders.
The pilot program started with five officers, all of whom took oaths of office Nov. 7. They were assigned to a region encompassing Boone, Cabell, Lincoln, Logan, Mingo, Putnam and Wayne counties.
Once the sex offender is sentenced to extended supervision, the specialized probation officers make sure the offender complies with court orders. The extra measures include electronic monitoring and polygraph examinations.
The pilot project runs for about nine months. It will expand one region at a time thereafter. Eventually, the state hopes to hire 30 probation officers.
A press release identified the officers as Jason Adkins, Courtney Lewis, Casey McCann, Jeremy Mitchell and L. Paul Pratt.