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Sunday, January 31, 2010
Ind. Courts - "Lake County closer to ankle monitors: Less expensive than jail for minor offenses"
Andy Grimm of the Gary Post-Tribune had this long story Jan. 30th that began:
CROWN POINT -- Lake County judges may soon be ordering nonviolent offenders to put on electronic anklets instead of sending them to cells in the troublesome county jail.County and city judges are working on a list of criteria that will define what crimes merit being locked up before trial, a key component of a "book and release" program touted during budget negotiations by Sheriff Roy Dominguez as a way for the county to save millions.
Instead of booking people arrested for nonviolent, misdemeanor-level crimes into the jail at a cost of $55 per day, inmates who are eligible to post bond could be fitted with a high-tech ankle bracelet and sent home for as little as $8.
"The cost has brought the issue to the forefront, but we've been talking about this for five years," said Judge Julie Cantrell, who said many jail inmates are locked up on minor charges because they can't afford the few hundred dollars in bond set for their crimes.
"Public safety is the most important issue, but the more I looked at it, the more I saw people that are in there because they have no bond money."
Posted by Marcia Oddi on January 31, 2010 09:02 AM
Posted to Indiana Courts