Electronic Prisons: The Operation of Ankle Monitoring in the Criminal Legal System

Electronic monitoring in the criminal legal system is increasingly criticized for being invasive, punitive, and disproportionately harmful to marginalized communities. It restricts movement, undermines privacy, burdens families, and perpetuates racial and class-based inequities while allowing private surveillance companies to profit from systemic control. Divestment from electronic monitoring, investment in community-based solutions, the elimination of private surveillance contracts, and robust privacy protections are necessary steps to reimagine justice.