AP: California To Change How They Track Sex-Offenders

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) -- California corrections officials are about to change a core part of how the department monitors released sex offenders.

An internal report obtained by The Associated Press found that parole agents are spending 44 percent of their work weeks reviewing the satellite-tracked movements of sex offender parolees and just 12 percent in the field.

So starting June 1, the companies that provide the GPS ankle bracelets will begin screening thousands of computer-generated alarms from the tracking devices, forwarding the most serious to parole agents for investigation.

The switch is designed to free agents who have been spending much of their time responding to alerts that can signal mundane problems such a low battery or lost cell phone signal.

California tracks more paroled sex offenders with GPS than any other state.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)