The Electronic Bracelet Program Marks Tenth Anniversary

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          Ten years ago, the Massachusetts Probation Service became one of the first law enforcement agencies in the country to monitor its own offenders by Electronic Bracelet. Four years later, Probation again became the first to use the GPS Bracelet to track high-risk offenders in real time.

          Since its introduction, the Electronic Monitoring (ELMO) Program has grown from monitoring one offender by Radio Frequency (RF) Bracelet, a form of house arrest, to approximately 1,900 probationers and parolees on both Radio Frequency, and the more extensive GPS bracelet per day.

          The ELMO Program has expanded to include new technology such as Crime Correlation which enables Probation personnel to determine if an offender on the GPS bracelet is at a crime scene or to eliminate that person as a suspect if he or she is not at the scene. Probation also works collaboratively with the Boston Police Department using the Shot Spotter, a device that tracks gunshots in high crime areas. Probation uses its Crime Correlation to confirm whether an individual monitored by a GPS bracelet is involved with the shooting either as the gunman or a witness.

          Another technological device is the Sobrietor which is used by Probation Officers in Massachusetts to monitor alcohol consumption. The Sobrietor is installed in the home of an offender - who has been ordered by a judge to abstain from alcohol as one of the conditions of his or her probation.

          “The ELMO Program has the most advanced technology available. This program was designed to track offenders in the community. This device holds offenders accountable. We know where they are 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Using the GPS technology, we archive this information and can retrieve it anytime,” said Paul Lucci, Deputy Commissioner and Statewide Manager of the ELMO Program.

          “We are proud of what the program has been able to accomplish and we look forward to continued growth and new technology as we advance into the next decade,” Lucci said.