The Slovak Ministry of Justice intends to launch a pilot project in the summer of 2015 whereby as many as 2000 convicts serving sentences under house arrest could find themselves wearing electronic bracelets. At a press conference on Monday the Department of Justice presented a draft law on the enforcement of sentences with more technological solutions.
The Ministry wants to run the pilot project in the summer of next year, with the system rolling out completely in 2016. Slovakia has received €22 million from EU funds for the project, with the Justice Ministry spokeswoman Alexandra Donevová stressing that this will allow Slovak prisons to move into the 21st century. Currently home imprisonment is imposed rarely; at only around 40 cases per year, stated specialist in criminal law Lucia Kurilovská, who was also involved in the preparation of this law. The new system of electronic monitoring however will be able to control 2,000 convicted persons. One prisoner in a stone prison costs the state €14,000 per annum, whereas this system requires only one-third the cost, added Donevová. The new law outlines the conditions for the use of electronic devices for convicts, while at the same preparing the necessary amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code and the Penal Code, specifying which electronic technical means should be used. In connection with these changes Kurilovská stressed that it will be necessary to increase the number of probation and mediation officers. The wearers of the systems will be monitored from a control centre which can see if they are staying within the home’s perimeter, evaluating incidents which occur, and if appropriate, dispatching the police, explains the system vendor Roman Hlubina, adding that the device will be a non-removable bracelet which will be worn preferably on the ankle.
