NASSAU, The Bahamas – The introduction of electronic monitoring technology to the law enforcement network of The Bahamas will “significantly add” to Her Majesty’s Prisons ability to more closely monitor the whereabouts of inmates who are part of the facility’s Extra Mural Scheme Programme (Work Release), Superintendent of Prisons, Dr. Elliston Rahming said Friday.
Dr. Rahming said prison officials anticipate that the programme will be expanded to include a behavioural audit among petty offenders presently incarcerated at the facility to determine to what extent electronic monitoring may be used to assist in reducing the prison population through early release initiatives, “thereby easing the burden on taxpayers without posing any greater threat to society.”
“It is no secret that we release some 70-80 low risk security offenders to perform janitorial, construction or handyman services at Police Stations throughout New Providence,” Dr. Rahming said.
“In addition, a group of inmates are released on a daily basis under the supervision of prison officers to maintain designated public places and assist various non-profit endeavours as part of our community service mandate.
“We also operate a mostly successful day-release Extra Mural Scheme Programme that allows carefully selected inmates to work at commercial and industrial enterprises as regular employees. Electronic monitoring will further steer them away from the temptation to go places or do things that may imperil public safety,” Dr. Rahming added.
Dr. Rahming said while the facility has always provided a “measure of supervision” over the inmates participating in the programme, they have not been able to account for their whereabouts “with the degree of certainty that our focus on optimum security requires.”
He said because of the facility’s “No-escape expectation,” Prison officials view electronic monitoring as an opportunity to provide “a tremendous disincentive to a trusted inmate who might otherwise allow the devil to fool him into walking or running away.”
“One of our mandates is to provide opportunities for inmates to gradually re-integrate into society as law-abiding citizens,” Dr. Rahming said. “The implementation of electronic monitoring will strengthen our successes in that area.”
Dr. Rahming said it is the hope of Prison officials that, in the fullness of time, the devices are also utilised on persons charged with, or convicted of, minor, non-violent offences thereby decreasing the number of persons incarcerated as remanded or sentenced persons.
“Since its inception at Harvard University in the 1960s, electronic monitoring has gradually become a form of community incarceration,” Dr. Rahming said. “Most criminals in other jurisdictions would tell you that it is not a piece of cake. Her Majesty’s Prisons fully endorses the introduction of electronic monitoring as a means of controlling and supervising offenders in the community.”
By Matt Maura
Bahamas Information Services
