Sentencing options have expanded significantly in recent decades, especially as awareness of effective rehabilitation and deterrence methods grows. Incarceration and probation used to be the primary penalties imposed on those convicted of crimes, and those two options were limited in effectiveness and also very costly. Now, judges are using alternative sentencing options such as mental health or substance abuse treatment and electronic home confinement to impose more tailored sentences on certain offenders.
Technology has certainly aided this expansion, especially for probation and home confinement options. Tracking devices can now help law enforcement officials monitor the location of many people simultaneously, without the high cost and onerous task of checking in on thousands of individuals in a given metropolitan area each day.
One example of effective use of technological monitoring is in the case of Kim Dotcom, who is the founder of a file sharing site that recently came under investigation for various intellectual property right infringement crimes. As a part of the pre-trial detention imposed on Mr. Dotcom, authorities have included a provision to prevent him from accessing the internet. This penalty is narrowly tailored and fits well with the specific issues in the case and is made possible through technological interventions. In many ways, this is an analogous method to the one applied to violent criminals who are no longer allowed to possess firearms.
Every case and state is different in how the courts handle sentencing and alternative sentencing options. However, having an experienced criminal defense attorney can help highlight those options and argue for implementation in cases where traditional sentencing does not fit the accusations.
Source: Law.com, "How to Impose Technological Restraints on Criminal Offenders," Art Bowker, July 31, 2012.
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