Ankle bracelet violations also being reviewed: justice minister
Last Updated: Thursday, October 30, 2008 | 4:01 PM CT
By John Weidlich, CBC News
Saskatchewan's electronic monitoring program will be part of a top-level review of procedures involving at-large offenders, Justice Minister Don Morgan says.
The government wants to make sure public safety is not at risk if an offender cuts off an ankle bracelet, Morgan told CBC News Wednesday.
The bracelets are used in house arrest cases as an alternative to incarceration. When an offender wearing a bracelet leaves their house when they are not supposed to, an alarm goes off and provincial officials are notified.
According to internal government reports on bracelet violators, it can be hours before authorities even try to catch up to them.
When asked about that on Wednesday, Morgan said the justice system should ensure public safety is the priority.
"You know, if somebody cuts off the device or does something where it puts them at large, we would expect, as soon as our officials become aware of it, for them to notify their superiors so that a determination can be made whether the public is at risk," Morgan said.
Different forces handle ankle bracelet violations in different ways, according to Prince Albert police Chief Dale McFee, president of the Saskatchewan Association of Chiefs of Police.
McFee said the first expectation of police is that corrections officials would check on the offender, unless the situation was too risky.
"If there is any indication that there's a safety concern from somebody attending that, then obviously the police are going to go," McFee said.
Internal reports show that police in Regina will not go to an offender's home to check on an electronic monitoring alarm, but will ask on-duty officers to keep an eye out for the subject.
"It varies a little bit across the province," McFee said. "But I think the key issue there is if there was somebody that did call in and say, 'Listen, I don't really want to check this person, he's been drinking. I think he could be violent.' The police are going to go in all those cases."
The purpose of the ministry review is to make sure public safety is not compromised when offenders are on the loose, Morgan said.
The issue became highly publicized earlier this month when two prisoners — one of them considered dangerous — were released by mistake in separate cases.
"My deputy minister, Doug Moen, is reviewing the release procedures," Morgan said.
"As part of that, he'll review and see whether people that are under electronic monitoring pose a threat or whether there's been a problem in that area as well."
