GARDNER DISTRICT PROBATION DEPARTMENT DEVISES NEW TRACKING SYSTEM TO AID LOCAL POLICE

        
The Gardner District Court Probation Department has created a new system to inform local police districts of probationers in the community and to help the police keep tabs on the activities and whereabouts of the 250 offenders under supervision in the court's jurisdiction.

Gardner District Court Chief Probation Officer Henry Culver said this collaborative effort with local law enforcement will help enhance public safety in the area.

Each of the four police departments in Gardner, Hubbardston, Petersham and Westminster as well as the State Police, based in Athol, will all receive an activity log which lists the name of the probationer, identifying information (such as height, weight, and physical characteristics), offenders' conditions of probation, name of the probation officer supervising the case, and a copy of the Massachusetts Probation Service's Warrant Protocol. The Warrant Protocol is a written procedure on how a probation warrant is issued.

"We are excited about this new initiative. We think it will make a big difference in tracking criminal behavior and activity in the area," said Culver.

A Gardner District Court Probation Officer has been assigned to update and distribute the log on a monthly basis.

The Massachusetts Probation Service is a department of the Massachusetts Trial Court. There are 12 Superior Court, 63 District Court, eight Boston Municipal Court, and 12 Probate and Family Court probation departments throughout the Commonwealth. Probation's Juvenile Court System includes 11 divisions which represent every county in the state. There are 21 Community Corrections Centers throughout the state.