SATELLITE TRACKING

A SATELLITE TRACKING PROGRAM

SATELLITE TRACKING FOR PRISONERS

More than half of offenders being monitored in an experimental satellite-tracking programme have been returned to jail or had their tagging orders revoked because of breaches. And around a quarter of them committed fresh crimes while being tracked, including one who was jailed for life and two others who received indeterminate sentences for "very serious offences", research for the Ministry of Justice has found. But the researchers also discovered evidence that the hi-tech tracking system helped convict some offenders, as well as keeping others out of trouble. Some 336 people in Greater Manchester, Hampshire and the West Midlands took part in trials of the new technology between 2004 and 2006 - most of them prolific offenders, including many convicted of sexual and violent crimes. The pilots were targeted at offenders deemed to be "high risk", with records of repeat convictions. A majority of those tracked had been released on licence after serving time in prison, though some had been given community penalties for less serious crimes. The offenders had to wear ankle tags and carry a portable tracking unit, which allowed their movements to be tracked via Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) technology. In some cases, the system allowed police to be alerted if offenders entered exclusion zones which they had been ordered to avoid. When the pilots were launched in 2004, ministers said the tracking devices would help to deter offenders from breaking the law, as well as allowing swift intervention if restrictions were flouted. But the report by Birmingham University criminologist Prof Stephen Shute found that in most cases, a system of "passive tracking" was used which meant it could be 24 hours before police and probation were alerted to breaches. The report revealed that a total of 194 of the tagged offenders (58%) were either recalled to prison for breaching their licences or had community penalties revoked during the period they were ordered to be satellite-tracked. Some 70 individuals (21% of the total) were convicted of offences committed during the period they were being tracked and 42 were jailed for them, while a further 16 (5%) were considered by probation officers to have committed offences while tagged. Of 149 who were recalled, 48 removed their tags and went on the run - with one remaining unlawfully at large for 233 days. One individual committed a very serious offence for which he received life imprisonment while being tracked, and two others received indeterminate prison sentences for public protection for offences committed while on the run. ***************** One in four prisoners freed early with a tag so they could be tracked by satellite reoffended in weeks, it emerged last night. Their offences included a rape and two more described as "very serious". Other criminals simply ditched the equipment. One was on the run for more than 200 days. The technology for David Blunkett's much-vaunted "prison without bars" scheme was found to be badly flawed; for instance it didn't work in the shadow of a tall building. When it was launched in 2004, the then Home Secretary claimed the system could pinpoint an offender's position to within six feet. Now the entire pilot, which has cost £3 million, looks certain to be ditched after the damning findings of an evaluation report. Under the scheme, convicts wear an ankle tag and a separate portable tracking unit, which uses mobile phone technology, costing £42 a day to operate. The unit relays the offender's movements, via satellite, to a control room run by private firms such as Premier or Serco. The aim is to alert the authorities if the criminal should enter an "exclusion zone" - such as a paedophile entering a children's play area - if a curfew is missed or if the equipment is removed. It was also supposed to "deter" people from reoffending, as they would know they would be recorded as being at the scene of any crime. But six out of ten criminals placed on the scheme breached their conditions by ignoring curfews, entering so-called "exclusion zones" or re-offending. In total, 26 per cent committed new crimes. Those on the scheme included burglars, robbers, sex attackers and violent thugs. The vast majority were "high risk" criminals with lengthy records. Scores were classed as "unlawfully at large", breaching their curfews or removing equipment. In one case, a criminal remained at large for 233 days. Shadow Justice Secretary Nick Herbert said: "Public safety has been compromised by this disastrous experiment. High-risk offenders have committed very serious crimes when they should have been in custody. "The Government is refusing to provide adequate prison capacity and instead wants to build trust in community sentences. "That cannot happen when sex offenders and violent criminals are released early with inadequate supervision." The report's author Stephen Shute, professor of criminal justice at Birmingham University, said: "It was recognised that tracking units would have difficulty picking up signals when located within buildings and that, even when carried in the street, the presence of tall structures could impede or distort the signals that they were able to receive. "It was also recognised that offenders who were determined to commit crime could forcibly remove their ankle tags or leave their tracking units behind." A Government spokesman said last night: "The Ministry of Justice is considering the evaluation report, and the recommendations of a National Offender Management Service Working Group, on the future of satellite tracking of offenders in England and Wales." Justice Minister David Hanson yesterday invited bids for the private finance contracts to build two 600-space jails, in south London and near Liverpool. They will not open until 2010, despite the current overcrowding crisis. SATELLITE TRACKING