TRACKING DOMESTIC ABUSE

19/12/2010  |   Filed under: The Leader  |   Posted by:

Spain is now using GPS trackers to help victims of domestic abuse. The surveillance centre in Madrid receives around 1,200 alerts a month from the 450 tags now in use.

Unlike other tags associated with crimes, these new ones are specifically designed for domestic abuse cases and are issued to both the suspect in a case as well as the victim. That way, not only can the police monitor the whereabouts of a person accused of crimes, they can monitor their proximity to the alleged victim, significantly reducing the risk of further incidents as the alarm is raised before the two people actually get close enough to each other.

Some people might consider the “big brother” society an invasion of privacy, but victims are thought to feel safer in the knowledge that they are being looked after by a virtual “guardian angel”.