Original Article Monday, May 16, 2005 - Page updated at 12:00 a.m. Nation Digest L.A. jails envision radio wristbands E-mail article Print view Search Most e-mailed Most read RSS Authorities in Los Angeles said yesterday they will begin tracking inmates in the nation's largest jail system using new radio-linked wristbands to pinpoint their location within a few feet. Los Angeles County plans to spend $1.5 million to tag about 1,900 inmates in one unit of the Pitchess Detention Center in Castaic, about 40 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles, beginning early next year. If it works well, the program may be expanded to the 6,000 inmates at the county's central jail and then to other facilities, said Marc Klugman, chief of the sheriff's department's Correctional Services Division. Removing or breaking the bracelet sets off a computer alarm, alerting guards to a possible prison escape. Beyond tracking inmates around cell blocks, the technology has the potential to allow work-release crews to roam within an electronic fence that could be easily moved wherever it is needed, said Harinder Singh, executive officer of the California Department of Corrections' technology transfer committee. http://www.wbir.com/news/news.aspx?storyid=25683 Nation's largest jail system to use tracking The nation's largest jail system will soon start experimenting with a way to keep an even closer watch on its inmates. Los Angeles County is planning to spend $1.5 million to tag 1,900 inmates with new radio-linked wristbands to pinpoint their locations. A police official says if the program is successful, it may be expanded to other facilities. The tracking device is an updated version of wristbands that have been tested since 2000 at a California state prison near the Mexican border. Removing or breaking the bracelet sets off a computer alarm, alerting guards to a possible prison escape. Michigan and Ohio also have tracking systems in place at some of its facilities. Copyright 2005 Associated Press Cackie Roberts , Producer Last updated: 5/16/2005 6:50:26 AM http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/15/AR2005051500964.html L.A. Jails to Use Tags to Track Inmates By DON THOMPSON The Associated Press Sunday, May 15, 2005; 9:38 PM SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Authorities in Los Angeles said Sunday they will begin tracking inmates in the nation's largest jail system using new radio-linked wristbands to pinpoint their location within a few feet. Los Angeles County plans to spend $1.5 million to tag about 1,900 inmates in one unit of the Pitchess Detention Center in Castaic, about 40 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles, beginning early next year. If it works well, the program may be expanded to the 6,000 inmates at the county's central jail and then to other facilities, said Marc Klugman, chief of the sheriff's department's Correctional Services Division. The tracking device is an updated version of wristbands that have been tested since 2000 at California's Calipatria State Prison near the Mexican border _ the first in the nation to track its inmates electronically. The concept has since been exported to other states. Michigan's Bureau of Juvenile Justice has had a $1 million tracking system at a maximum-security prison since 2003 and is installing it at a second detention facility. The technology also is being used at a minimum-security prison in Chillicothe, Ohio, and at a medium-security correctional center near Springfield, Ill. Removing or breaking the bracelet sets off a computer alarm, alerting guards to a possible prison escape. Beyond tracking inmates around cell blocks, the technology has the potential to allow work-release crews to roam within an electronic fence that could be easily moved wherever it is needed, said Harinder Singh, executive officer of the California Department of Corrections' technology transfer committee. Los Angeles County jails' revolving-door population poses the toughest test yet for the technology. The facilities house about 18,000 inmates on a given day, but nearly 200,000 people pass through the system each year, some for a few hours, others for months. Several thousand inmates must be moved to and from court appearances each day. Last year alone there were an estimated 1,330 violent incidents that injured 88 jail employees and 1,742 inmates in Los Angeles County. Five prisoners were killed. California Department of Corrections: http://www.corr.ca.gov http://www.fox19.com/Global/story.asp?S=3349144 Prison Surveillance Los Angeles jails to use radio tags to track inmates The nation's largest jail system will soon start experimenting with a way to keep an even closer watch on its inmates. Los Angeles County is planning to spend one-point-five million dollars to tag 19-hundred inmates with new radio-linked wristbands to pinpoint their locations. A police official says if the program is successful, it may be expanded to other facilities. The tracking device is an updated version of wristbands that have been tested since 2000 at a California state prison near the Mexican border. Removing or breaking the bracelet sets off a computer alarm, alerting guards to a possible prison escape. Michigan and Ohio also have tracking systems in place at some of its facilities.