GPS Tracking ROI

I write often here on tracking criminals, parolees and ‘high risk juveniles with GPS.  The usual reason many law enforcement jurisdictions haven’t done much along these lines is the age old excuse every government worker uses to get out of work … or thinking … the "We have no money" line.

Here’s a nice piece from a rural county staring in a small way, but a county run by smart people who can do simple math.

COEUR D’ALENE, Idaho  —  A northern Idaho county plans to start using GPS bracelets to track juvenile offenders.

…. She said high-risk juveniles on probation would be likely candidates for the bracelet. … Peterson said those in juvenile diversion usually are first-time offenders such as truants, runaways, or petty thieves. She said they are more likely to run away and would be good candidates for one of the bracelets.

The juveniles must agree to take part in the program.

So far, the county has only put the GPS bracelets on adults. The wearer pays the county $10 per day.

Mike Wall, administrator for the county’s Adult Misdemeanor Probation Department, said the devices work well… Full article here.

So the adult GPS supervision program works well.  And the county, as I have often advocated before, makes the wearers of the bracelets pay for the service.  They will likely all opt for that because by going into the GPS program they can be out and about … and work … saving the county further costs they would likely incur paying for support of the offender’s families.

But perhaps the juvies won’t/can’t pay?  It is still worth a fortune to society to get into this.  $10 a day is $3600 a year in round numbers.

In almost every state, prisoners in confinement cost more than $36,000 a year (plus the hidden welfare/loss of taxes burden).  In case math is not your forte’, just remember that with a radix 10 number system like we normally use, every zero place holder means ten time more.  So id the country puts the devices on say 10 misdemeanor juveniles in a year, that’s a burden of $36,000. If paying that one bill keeps, just for the sake of argument, two of them out of prison in the future (about 50% are destined to go on to bigger and better crimes in today’s justice system).  Anyway, just two per year are saved, the taxpayer makes a 100% rate of return … $36,000 spent, $72,000 not spent .  These numbers scale well for big or small populations.  Do the math.  GPS tracking can save a fortune for the taxpayer.

OH, and at the risk of sounding like an old softy … is preventing a minor offender from going off on the road to perdition and ‘hard time’ worth anything?  Probably not, unless it’s your kid, or your neighbors … or your nephew or grandson, etc.