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Abstract: 

This issue of Journal of Offender Monitoring brings together important appellate court rulings on electronic monitoring and its application to a variety of offenses, as well as our regular review of statutory developments. In each issue of the journal, we provide a comprehensive summary of proposed or newly enacted legislation authorizing the use of GPS and other monitoring technologies in federal and state law. But legislation is seldom the last word: statutes invite conflicting interpretations, and even when the statutory language is clear, its application will inevitably be challenged; in such cases, appellate courts are called upon to clarify the law, ensure its fair and intended application, and strike down, where necessary, statutes that are unconstitutional. This issue examines a variety of recent appellate decisions in federal and state courts on the full range of concerns and issues that arise in the use of electronic monitoring for probation and parole, and pretrial supervision, including bail. It includes cases on the constitutionality of EM with respect to various state constitutions and particularly in a Fourth Amendment (search and seizure) context; sentencing conditions; the use of EM with sex offenders, including lifetime monitoring; and technical violations.

Keywords: Court Decisions On the Use of Electronic Monitoring; Federal and State Legislation and Electronic Monitoring

Affiliations:  1: Journal of Offender Monitoring.