Alamance Judges Urge State to Fund GPS Ankle Monitor Program

Alamance County district judges told state lawmakers that a GPS ankle-monitor program is an essential courtroom tool for enforcing no-contact orders and protecting victims, and they urged the General Assembly to provide recurring funding to keep it running.

LaVonda Fowler, executive director of the North Carolina Criminal Justice Information Network (CJIN), told the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Jan. 15 that the statewide program is effective but at risk without ongoing support. CJIN asked lawmakers for about $11.5 million in annual recurring funds to maintain and expand a system that, as of the week of the hearing, had roughly 1,400 monitors in use across 63 counties. The network uses GPS ankle monitors to enforce court-ordered no-contact conditions and to alert potential victims when violations occur.

District judges in Alamance County filed a letter supporting the program, saying it provides a less restrictive alternative to incarceration and helps protect victims. Local judges told the committee they could not imagine not having the tool available in their courtrooms. Advocates and survivors also appeared at the hearing to describe instances in which use of the monitors prevented harm.

Lawmakers on the oversight panel pressed CJIN officials about the program's costs and the sustainability of long-term funding. Those fiscal questions come amid competing requests from other parts of the criminal justice system: corrections officials separately pressed legislators for additional money to address staffing and infrastructure challenges within the state prison system.

For Alamance residents, the debate matters in practical ways. If recurring funds are not approved, the program could scale back or shut down, removing an option judges say helps keep alleged offenders accountable while avoiding jail for certain defendants. That could affect how local courts manage cases involving domestic violence, stalking and sexual assault, and it could change the way potential victims receive timely notifications about violations.

The oversight committee's review is part of the General Assembly's broader budget and policy process. Lawmakers will weigh CJIN's funding request alongside other criminal justice priorities in coming weeks. Residents and local stakeholders who follow court and safety issues should watch the budget debates for decisions that will determine whether the GPS ankle-monitor program continues as a routine option for Alamance courts or is constrained by limited state funding.