Community Corrections

Electronic Monitoring

Electronic monitoring is a modern offender supervision program which incorporates advanced assessment and screening techniques with electronic and computer technology.

The program uses technology to verify that an offender remains within his or her home during specified periods, as a condition of early release from incarceration.

• Offenders must pass an eligibility screening process to qualify for electronic monitoring.
• Offenders placed in this program are carefully selected, lower-risk adults sentenced to custody, with less than a year remaining in their sentence.
• The program is generally limited to non-violent offenders who are employed or attending school or other approved activities and who meet strict screening criteria. Those with histories of sexual assault or domestic abuse do not qualify for the program.

• Participants are fitted with a tamper-resistant ankle bracelet containing a miniature radio transmitter.
• The bracelet sends a radio signal to a receiver connected to the wearer's home telephone line.
• The receiver transmits data via the telephone line to a central monitoring computer 24 hours a day.
• Each monitoring bracelet is programmable to allow the offender to be away from home during certain pre-arranged times of the day to go to work, school, treatment programs, or other approved activities.
• Offenders are required to return home directly following such activities. Curfews are strictly monitored.

• Should the wearer attempt to remove the bracelet or be away from home without authorization, an alert is automatically transmitted to the central computer.
• Following a brief protocol to verify that a violation has occurred, local electronic monitoring officers in the offender's home area are notified and begin appropriate enforcement action.
• Violations may result in discipline or new criminal charges.

Participants who are employed are charged a fee, geared to their income, to help cover equipment costs. No offender will be disqualified from the program because of inability to pay.

Electronic monitoring officers conduct random visits to the homes, schools, and workplaces of participating offenders to insure that they are abiding by their release conditions.

Inspections by electronic monitoring officers are assisted by a new "drive-by" device that can detect the presence of someone wearing a bracelet inside a nearby building.

On February 22, 2002, the Government of Ontario announced that as part of its community strict discipline program, the electronic monitoring program will be expanded to include other compliance tools, such as voice verification systems, radio-frequency technology, electronic paging and global positioning systems. At the same time, the government announced its intention to seek a public-private partnership to assist in the delivery of the expanded program.

On October 18, 2002, the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services announced that a new public-private partnership with JEMTEC Incorporated has been created to deliver Ontario's expanded electronic surveillance program in Ontario. JEMTEC will supply a range of electronic compliance tools, including voice recognition/verification systems, radio-frequency systems and global positioning systems to be applied in the supervision of offenders.