Ohio To Track Prisoners With Radio Tags
Alanco Technologies’ wristwatch-sized transmitters will be tested by the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction on prisoners and guards in the Ross Correctional Facility in Chillicothe.
The radio frequency identification technology devices can track inmates within the prison and send a computer alert if they try to remove the transmitters.
Guards will have the ability to manually activate an alert on their transmitters, with the alarm being automatically sent if the transmitter is forcibly removed or the guard is knocked down.
All 33 Ohio correctional facilities will get the devices if the pilot is successful.
Alanco CEO Robert R. Kauffman says California, Illinois, and Michigan prisons already use its products, and adds that three other states are expected to start utilizing the technology.
Abstracted by the National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center(NLECTC) from the CNet (08/02/04); Best, Jo.