Bunnell, FL - Anyone who's arrested for domestic violence in Flagler County will likely be leaving the county jail with an electronic device around one of their ankles.
The Flagler County Sheriff's Office instituted a county-wide ankle-monitoring program on November 1st for domestic violence offenders, including those arrested by the police departments of Bunnell or Flagler Beach.
Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly says the idea came from a task force he created in June 2017 to reduce domestic violence incidents in the county.
"I’m very glad that this program is now available in Flagler County," Staly added. "The best part of this program is there is no cost to the taxpayers, as the offender pays the costs and it actually saves the taxpayer money by not having to house and feed them in the [Flagler County Jail]."
The ankle monitors will have GPS tracking devices which will automatically contact authorities and victims should whoever's wearing them go into any areas - or "exclusion zones" - where they are forbidden to enter. Those zones will include places like the victim's home or place of employment.
"Being able to track offenders while they are out of jail awaiting trial not only gives victims peace of mind, but it also gives the offender an incentive to not re-offend and not violate a no-contact order because they will be arrested," Staly noted.
The monitors - which are provided and supported by Securus Technologies - may not only be placed on those arrested for domestic violence. Flagler judges will have the discretion to place one on anyone who bonds out of FCJ.
Those who receive the monitor are required to maintain the battery charge and to pay all costs associated with the monitoring.
