Dispute over effectiveness of ankle monitors for immigrants
EL PASO ( Texas): Federal authorities’ shift away from separating immigrant families caught in the United States illegally now means that many parents and children are quickly released, only to be fitted with electronic monitoring devices – a practice which both the government and advocacy groups oppose for different reasons.
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is issuing thousands of 155gm ankle monitors that immigrants call grilletes, or electronic shackles, spelling big profits for GEO Group, the country’s second largest private prison contractor.
Government officials say the devices are effective in getting people to show up to immigration court, but that they stop working once deportation proceedings begin.
The reason, according to attorneys and people who wore the devices or helped monitor those wearing them: Some immigrants simply ditch them and disappear.
Immigrant advocates and legal experts argue, meanwhile, that the devices – which are commonly used for criminal parolees – are inappropriate and inhumane for people seeking US asylum.
ICE spokesman Matthew Bourke said immi- gration court attendance is strong for immigrants in intensive supervision, but that ankle monitors and other measures are “not an effective tool” after deportation orders are issued. There isn’t reliable information on the number of ankle monitor recipients who remove them and flee – especially when deportation is imminent – but experts say it’s high.
“People can just cut those things off if they want to,” said Sara Ramey, a San Antonio immigration attorney whose asylum-seeking clients are routinely assigned ankle monitors.
“It doesn’t really ensure compliance.” — AP