ICE Tags Mexico Border Crossers with GPS Devices Sputnik
go to original December 27, 2014

BI ExacuTrack One GPS Monitor

As the number of Central American families crossing the US.-Mexico border continues to grow, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials are hoping a GPS-enabled ankle bracelet will allow authorities to keep tabs on them once they’re here.

The device is already being used on some families apprehended at the Texas Rio Grande Valley border crossing. The pilot program, known as RGV 50, began on December 1 and will extend to more than 250 families who are caught traveling through the valley if it’s successful, according to the Associated Press.

Because ICE authorities can’t send undocumented immigrants back to their home countries, these individuals are registered in a years-long process known as “Alternatives to Detention Program.” The huge backlog of immigration cases in U.S. courts has created more uncertainty of how to keep a tab on these families.

While an ankle bracelet is more commonly used to keep track of criminals on house arrest, the scale of the new program will likely expand as ICE officials estimate that more than 70% of families fail to report back to immigration authorities once they’re released. The bracelet will be removed once they return to border patrol.

Read the rest at Sputnik

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