NCJ Number
154906
Journal
Compiler Volume: 14 Issue: 2 Dated: (Winter/Spring 1995) Pages: 7-9
Date Published
1995
Length
3 pages
Annotation
Begun in 1989 to reduce jail overcrowding, the Cook County Sheriff's (Illinois) electronic monitoring program allows nonviolent, short-time sentenced and pretrial inmates to live in the community instead of being held behind bars.
Abstract
The electronic monitoring equipment, which consists of six computer terminals, or monitoring towers, tells whether or not someone is in the 150-foot range allowed by the receiver set up in the defendant's residence. The receiver, which resembles a cable TV box, is connected to a phone jack in the home. When someone moves out of range, the receiver can no longer pick up the transmitter signal sent from the nonremovable black band worn on the left ankle. This triggers a violation report, which is automatically printed out. The report shows the time of the last completed check and the time transmission was interrupted. The program allows inmates to work, attend school, and participate in job skills programs. House arrest also encourages rehabilitation, because inmates remain in a family setting, can participate in drug and alcohol abuse programs, and can undergo intensive counseling. The program's success is due largely to the partnership between the staff and participants, since there is no method to prevent someone from escaping the program, although the threat of punishment and reincarceration act as deterrents. The goal for 1995 is to increase the number of participants to 1,500 or 1,600.