Question

What is electronic monitoring and do you believe it is effective. I you were a judge, what types of crimes would you sentence someone to electronic monitoring and why

Answer 1

Electronic monitoring is the use of electronic devices to track those on probation or parole and it is of different types: Radio Frequency (RF) tagging, Global Positioning System (GPS) tagging and Remote Alcohol Monitoring (RAM). For example the GPS tagging is used to create ‘exclusion zones’ offering the authorities the potential to track the wearer’s location in real time. Electronic Monitoring (EM) seeks to reduce the use of imprisonment, monitoring of compliance, reduction in reoffending and support desistance from crime. The fact that since its first introduction in Scotland on a pilot basis in 1998, EM currently operates proves that is serving its purpose, but in case of the false positive alerts that overwhelm corrections officials, ‘tamper-proof’ devices should be circumvented. If I a judge, the types of crimes I would sentence someone to electronic monitoring include criminals who have committed serious crimes such as murder or a terrorist attack as we cannot afford such victims to commit such serious crimes again, people lost through killing cannot be brought alive.