The New Orleans City Council today learned more about the shortcomings of the city’s electronic monitoring system. It comes after a suspect on an ankle monitor allegedly murdered a woman during a carjacking in 7th Ward in early June.
At a New Orleans Criminal Justice Committee hearing on the city’s electronic monitoring system, New Orleans City council members demanded answers from the criminal court judges about how the electronic monitoring system works.
New Orleans Chief Criminal Judge Karen Herman explained to the committee, anyone who is ordered to electronic monitoring has to pay a private company to monitor them through an ankle monitor device while on bail or on probation.
She says if the offender violates the terms of their monitoring; it is the responsibility of the private monitoring company to make the arrest -- not the New Orleans Police Department.
“The company that is supervising them with the ankle monitoring...they have arrest powers to go pick the person up as a violation of their ankle monitor and bring them to jail,” said Judge Herman.
The judges told the committee that the courts cannot afford to pay the monitor company to monitor people with ankle bracelets.
"A bond reduction for someone accused of, not only accused but who has a history, of violent acts against other people. I think there should be a far more stringent process," City Council Criminal Justice Committee Chairman Jay Banks tells WWL First News, Chris Miller.
"We need to make sure that however this happened, with an offender with a violent history against people, doesn't get that same opportunity again," he said.
