HANDBOOK ON THE MANAGEMENT OF VIOLENT EXTREMIST PRISONERS
62
(d) Intensive supervision programmes
In an intensive supervision programme, probationers are supervised very closely, with require-
ments for frequent face-to-face meetings with probation ofcers, a set curfew, monitoring of
contacts by the police, frequent random testing for alcohol or drug use and, in some cases,
electronic monitoring. Research suggests that, within the overall offender and recidivist popu-
lation, it is high-risk offenders, in particular, who are most likely to benet from intensive
institutional and community-based interventions.
92
In Canada, for example, an evaluation of
the application of intensive supervision practices to high-risk offenders found that the inten-
sive supervision group had lower rates of readmission to incarceration for revocation of
conditional release.
93
This is not the case for low-risk offenders, for whom intensive treatment
initiatives may actually even result in increasing recidivism rates.
94
Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite monitoring for offenders with the highest risk has
been used as part of a series of graduate sanctions, or as a special condition imposed by the
releasing authority. GPS monitoring is used to enforce curfews, to establish prohibited/
restricted areas and to assess and monitor offender movement in the community.
95
Depend-
ing on the type of GPS technology employed, an offender can be monitored on an almost
real-time basis. This effective, yet complex and costly tool may render it possible in some
jurisdictions to provide heightened supervision of high-risk offenders while allowing them to
reintegrate into the community.
96
(e) Electronic monitoring
Electronic monitoring is used as a component of intensive supervision in some jurisdictions.
A meta-analysis of studies examining the impact of electronic monitoring on the criminal
behaviour of moderate- to high-risk offenders did not nd any conclusive evidence demon-
strating the effectiveness of electronic monitoring in reducing recidivism or greater effective-
ness compared with other diversion programmes. It suggested that electronic monitoring was
most effectively applied when used in conjunction with treatment interventions that had been
shown to be effective.
97
An evaluation of the Learning Resources Program in Canada pro-
duced some interesting insights. The programme provided electronically monitored probation-
ers with access to individual and group counselling and skill development. It was observed
that high-risk offenders who were given electronic monitoring and intensive treatment had
lower recidivism rates than high-risk offenders who were not. The importance of this evalu-
ation is that it demonstrated the effectiveness of intensive rehabilitation services for high-risk
offenders that involved a combination of supervision and treatment.
92
See D. A. Andrews and J. Bonta, The Psychology of Criminal Conduct, 3rd ed. (Cincinnati, Ohio, Anderson,
2003); and M. A. Paparozzi and P. Gendreau, “An intensive supervision program that worked: service delivery,
professional orientation, and organizational supportiveness”, The Prison Journal, vol. 85, No. 4 (2005),
pp. 445–466.
93
R. Serin, B. Voung and S. Briggs, “Intensive supervision practices: a preliminary examination”, Research
Brief No. B-31 (Ottawa, Correctional Service of Canada, 2003); see also Paparozzi and Gendreau, “An intensive
supervision program that worked”.
94
P. Gendreau, A Review of the Learning Resources Program, John Howard Society of Newfoundland (Ottawa,
Solicitor General of Canada, 1996).
95
International Association of Chiefs of Police, “Tracking sex offenders with electronic monitoring technology:
implications and practical uses for law enforcement” (Alexandria, Virginia, 2008).
96
See M. Nellis, “Understanding the electronic monitoring of offenders in Europe: expansion, regulation and
prospects”, Crime, Law and Social Change, vol. 62, No. 4 (2014), pp. 489–510; and H. Graham and G. McIvor,
Scottish and International Review of the Uses of Electronic Monitoring, Report No. 8/2015 (Stirling, University of Stirling,
Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research, 2015).
97
M. Renzema and E. Mayo-Wilson, “Can electronic monitoring reduce crime for moderate to high-risk
offenders?”, Journal of Experimental Criminology, vol. 1, No. 2 (2005), pp. 215–237.