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Tracking offenders: A closer look at GPS monitoring technology

Between 30 and 35 people in the Franklin County Municipal Court are under electronic monitoring.

Franklin County Municipal Court Probation uses a similar ankle monitor device that accused murderer Brian Golsby was wearing when he was arrested for the murder of Reagan Tokes.

Ankle monitors are used by the court as a diversion tool instead of jail, allowing people either convicted of a crime or charged to continue to work as a cost savings to taxpayers.

But the public's perception that these monitors will keep criminals away from them may be the intent, but they don't.

"It's a tool for diversion, not a catch-all," Probation Officer Michael Capuano said.

Capunao said the device uploads every 10 seconds so they have access to know where the parole is all of the time.

Though the county doesn't have someone sitting in front of the computer 24/7. However, he can get text messages at any time of the day or night if an offender enters what are called exclusion zones.

Those are zones defined by the prosecutor as places they are forbidden to go.

"The device calls into the server when the server gets that message it texts me immediately. so we are talking real time we're talking a minute and a half to two minutes from the time the violation actually occurs," he said.

When that happens, probation calls the court for a warrant and then the police are called to pick up the offender. But the program is far from perfect, especially if the offender figures a way to slip the monitor off.

"If they slip it off we would not get any notice," Capuano said.

But if it's cut off an alert is sent. He said these devices can't do everything; including preventing crime. They only tell the probation department where a person is located.

The Franklin County Municipal court relies on GPS ankle bracelets to track offenders on probation, which is different from Common pleas Court. It uses ankle bracelets, but they don't track.

The court charges offenders $10 a day to wear ankle monitors. If an offender fails to charge the device or if the device doesn't send a signal, the probation office will get an alert and an arrest warrant can be issued.

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