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Satellites to track
paedophiles
A British company is to hold talks with ministers with a view to launching a Home Office-backed trial involving between 100 and 500 child sex offenders. It is also talking to government officials in the US, Italy and Ireland and is to tag a number of paedophiles who have volunteered to wear the device. Sky Guardian unveiled the first electronic device made specifically to track paedophiles at the Labour Party’s conference in September and tested the technology on a volunteer MP this week. Civil liberty groups have, however, expressed deep concern. "If they have been released, they should be free to live their life in liberty. This muddies the waters between guilt and innocence," said Mark Littlewood, campaigns director of Liberty. ‘This is more likely to make them feel alienated. Once released they should be made to feel a normal member of the community." But the news is likely to be greeted favourably by child protection campaigners who have long called for the obligatory tagging of paedophiles. Until now the technology to constantly monitor offenders has been suspect and paedophile experts have expressed fears that it doesn’t allow for instant communication with offenders, which they say is crucial if it is to stop paedophiles reoffending. Unlike tags now used to enforce curfews for general criminal offenders, which communicate on localised radio frequencies, the new device uses global satellite positioning technology. This will allow probation services and police to pinpoint the wearer anywhere in the UK to within three metres. The device is capable of providing a detailed diary at the end of every day of where the user has been. The electronic diary can
be studied remotely by experts to build up a profile of the offender,
which will help them predict whether the person will offend again. The new technology, which
is attached to a person’s ankle, is adapted from electronic tags
fitted to offenders in the US. The device has a wireless connection to a
special mobile phone carried by the offender at all times. If the phone,
which is linked to a call centre staffed by trained paedophile experts,
is separated from the tag an alarm is triggered. —Guardian
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PAEDOPHILES
are to be electronically tagged in the UK for the first time in a move
that could prompt a revolution in the treatment and monitoring of sex
offenders.