Weekes supports use of monitoring devices for the bailed

Placing electronic bracelets on persons on bail to monitor their movements is an option that can be explored by the local judicial system, Chief Magistrate Ian Weekes has suggested.

Noting that the Bail Act speaks to conditions of bail, the Chief Magistrate said that judicial officers can set out specific conditions for persons on bail to follow. He said, where there are concerns regarding instructing that people on bail wear ankle bracelets, Weekes gave the assurance that there are very few defense attorneys who would not support the concept.

He said: “In a case like that, we can track where you are. We can know for sure and there are not cases where you can just get out of a bracelet. And that is one of the options that can give the balance to persons, where we know where you are, and we know that you are fulfilling one of the conditions, or some of the conditions of your bail.

“I believe that that is a very useful option that is again used widely in the international community. It’s one of the futuristic ways that we can give the kind of balance in the system to those who might have a problem with those who may be out and those who might have a problem with those of us who may release them.”

The Chief Magistrate indicated that even if persons on bail were instructed to wear an electronic bracelet they would still be required to have sureties to account for them, especially if there are issues with device tampering.

Weekes spoke about the electronic bracelets on Tuesday, as he participated in the Men’s Ministry of the Cave Hill Wesleyan Holiness Church Man Talk session, on the topic: Is Jail Time Working Out for the Betterment of Law Breakers.

During the Zoom event , prominent criminologist Kim Ramsay supported the call for a parole system being introduced in Barbados. She argued that there are inmates who are no threat to society and can be reintegrated into society once they have shown that they are suitable candidates. The criminologist said there is a need for systems to be put in place to monitor ex-convicts’ behaviour as they are reintegrated.

She said: “I believe that a good-running parole system can be very useful in terms of not only acting as a deterrent, but it could be some kind of system for persons who are near the end of their sentence, who are like a year from the end of their sentence, where they can go back into society and prove their worth monitored by parole officers, probation officers.”

Acting Inspector in the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) Peter Dawson, who supports the introduction of a parole system, noted that there are countries that monitor the whereabouts of sex-offenders.

He said for over 36 years, he has been hearing about the implementation of a parole system in Barbados which he said is long overdue.

“I really think we need to start doing something about it because we the police do not like to see these people repeating all the time. We don’t like to see you coming back all the time. We are members of society and whatever happens in society affects us. I do hope that in going forward we can get this parole system up and running,” the officer noted.

Meanwhile, former rehabilitation officer and Chairperson of the Advisory Board Government Industrial School Dr Lucille Baird said she believes the establishment of a halfway house is needed to represent a buffer for ex-offenders to re-enter into society.

She recalled that at the time she volunteered at the prison, talks regarding a half-way house were ongoing, and several buildings were also identified to house such a facility.

“It never came to fulfillment,” Dr Baird said. “But I think it is something that is very needed because inmates are just released out of the prison. A lot of the time inmates go through programmes and to me some of them are genuinely rehabilitated and mean to change, but when they go back to the same environment, to the same peer pressure, to the same block, they become recidivists. To avoid that we should have a half-way house which plays a buffer for re-entry into society”.
anestahenry@barbadostoday.bb