Kane Co. Sheriff Launches Electronic Monitoring Program

From Kane County Sheriff: On January 7th , 2020, at 9 am, Kane County Sheriff Ron Hain launched the new Electronic GPS Monitoring Pilot Program by placing five sentenced detainees who were serving county jail time for non-violent traffic charges on ankle bracelets and releasing them from the Kane County Adult Corrections Center. The Sheriff’s new initiative has been a priority since he took office a little over one year ago. The intention of the pilot program is to test the operational capabilities before expanding to serve additional non-violent sentenced offenders and lower level crime pre-trial detainees, much like the previous program operated by Kane County Court Services.

Sheriff Hain passed a County Board resolution in September establishing the fees for participation in electronic monitoring. Each detainee is charged an initial $250 fee, $50 of which is held as a security deposit for the monitoring equipment. The remainder covers the $10 per day monitoring fee charged by the Sheriff’s Office to the participant for the first twenty days on electronic monitoring. A credit card will be held on file for the daily charges for a sentence beyond 20 days. Sheriff Hain noted this program is vitally important to reducing the jail population and save County tax payers money, as it costs an average of $62 per day to house a person in the jail, as opposed to $3.75 per day for the lease of the monitoring equipment. Another key element of the Sheriff’s program is the enhancement of public safety and reducing recidivism through the Sheriff’s new Corrections Diversion Team, that meets with each electronic monitoring candidate prior to their release and offers them job training and placement. All five participants will be returning to work when they leave the jail. “By providing them a leg up when they return to the community, we’re creating opportunities for them that they never realized existed and help to ensure they never return to the criminal justice system,” said Sheriff Ron Hain.

Electronic Monitoring will be operated by the Sheriff’s Court Operations Unit, which was created under the new administration. The team consists of a Lieutenant and four deputies, who are also tasked with serving civil court papers, arrest warrants, and evictions. Sheriff Hain credits Lieutenant Brian McCarty for his work in helping to design the details of the program. The Sheriff also noted that Kane State’s Attorney Joe McMahon and his office, along with Chief Judge Clint Hull and members of his judiciary, played critical roles in getting the pilot program off the ground.

The press release was produced by Kane County Sheriff. The views are the author's own.