CDCR Completes GPS Implementation for High Risk Sex Offenders on Parole

May 1, 2008 |
Valor

from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR)

The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), announced yesterday that they have “completed placing every High Risk Sex Offender parolee on GPS monitoring.”
Scott Kernan, Chief Deputy Secretary of Adult Operations for CDCR, said:

“This is a significant accomplishment and shows that we are on track in implementing the GPS requirements mandated by Jessica’s Law. Our parole agents are working aggressively to increase public safety, and this is a major step for us to monitor those sex offenders deemed high risk to re-offend.”

Passed by California voters in 2006, Proposition 83 – also known as Jessica’s Law – requires that every paroled sex offender be monitored by GPS. With limited amounts of GPS units, CDCR has prioritized the approximately 2,500 of its high-risk sex offender population on parole to be equipped with ankle monitors.

At any given time, California has nearly 9,000 sex offenders on parole supervision by CDCR. In addition to the high-risk population, CDCR has equipped 2,300 non high-risk sex offenders with GPS, bringing the total of sex offenders on GPS in California to 4,800. That is nearly triple the 1,800 GPS units currently used by Florida, the second leading state to use the devices.
CDCR is scheduled to have the entire sex offender parolee population on GPS monitoring devices by June 2009. Division of Adult Parole Office Director Tom Hoffman, said:

Not only do we monitor these individuals by GPS, we have put them on reduced caseloads so that our parole agents can focus on keeping track of this population. Our parole agents are out there every day doing their best to monitor these individuals to prevent them from re-offending.

Managing sex offender issues has been a priority for the department. In 2006, the CDCR developed and implemented significant notification procedures to local law enforcement agencies prior to the release of a sex offender parolee to their county. The department also works continuously to improve its policies on managing sex offenders, including implementing the life-time GPS monitoring required by Jessica’s Law. CDCR frequently seeks input from the California Sex Offender Management Board (SOMB), which was created in 2006 to advise the Legislature, the Governor and the CDCR in developing sound policy and recommendations on sex offender management.
For more information on GPS monitoring and Jessica’s Law, visit the CDCR web site at http://www.cdcr.ca.gov/.