By DONNA KENNY KIRWAN

PAWTUCKET — The Pawtucket Police Department, along with Rhode Island as a whole, is on the cutting edge of new global positioning system technology that will allow for better tracking of criminal offenders as well as other public safety enhancements.

At a press conference held Tuesday morning at Pawtucket Municipal Court, Congressman Patrick Kennedy joined State Rep. Peter Kilmartin, Pawtucket Mayor James Doyle, and Pawtucket Police Department officials to unveil a prototype of a new GPS tracking system designed specifically for local law enforcement agencies.
According to Kennedy, the continued development of the new GPS tracking system will be aided by a $200,000 appropriation that Kennedy helped secure through the Omnibus Appropriations Bill. A Lincoln-based company, Lighthouse Criminal Justice Integration Systems Group, has developed the web-based applications that tailor the GPS system for law enforcement uses.
 He said that Lighthouse has been working in conjunction with Justice Assistance, a non-profit organization that provides programs for the criminal justice system in the state, in shaping the applications.
Police Chief George L. Kelley III, who is also president of the
Rhode Island Police Chiefs Association, said that his department had tested the new system and found it to be effective. He said that Lincoln Police Chief Brian Sullivan had also successfully tried out the tracking system.
According to those at the press conference, the new GPS tracking system, which involves a one-piece ankle bracelet, provides “real-time” geographic tracking of individuals. The system allows criminal offenders to be restricted to or from pre-defined zones and can notify officials when restricted zones are being breached. The technology allows for notification to be made by e-mail, text, cell/voice and pager.
Jonathan Houston, executive director of Justice Assistance, said he would like to see the system used in the criminal justice arena, to allow for better monitoring of offenders on home confinement, or for tracking sexual offenders or those with a history of domestic violence or stalking. He added that the technology can be adapted to protect victims as well, because if the victim carries a piece of GPS equipment on their person, the system can track whether an offender or stalker is within a certain radius  of them.
Houston also said that the new system will save the state money by allowing for more offenders to be placed on home confinement, but with more efficient monitoring.
Kelley concurred with the benefits of the system, noting that, especially in cases of domestic violence, police are often limited in what they can do to protect a victim beyond that person obtaining a restraining order. He also said that the system will help alleviate case overload, noting that in Rhode Island currently, there are a reported 600 sex offenders on probation or parole with only 11 parole officers.
Jeffrey Angus, program manager for Lighthouse, said his company uses technology manufactured by Omnilink and creates the web-based applications that are needed by law enforcement. “It allows for the court-ordered individual to be out in the community and be well-monitored,” he said.
Angus added that the specifics of how the monitoring will be handled and by what entity is still to be decided. “It depends on how the state decides to adapt it,” he said.