Violent French husbands 'may be tagged'.

Men seen as likely to be violent towards their wives could be forced to wear an electronic tag under a law being debated by the French parliament.

The tag would have to be worn by men who have received a court order to stay away from their partner. The proposal is part of a draft law on conjugal violence. It has cross-party support and is expected to pass easily. According to the proposed measures, men who have received court orders to stay away from their partners will wear an electronic bracelet and if they break the order and approach, police are alerted.
Psychological violence can be hard to prove in court. Another key clause has caused rather more argument - at least outside parliament, says our correspondent.  This is the creation of a new crime of psychological violence inside the home.
The bills' supporters say it is important to recognise that actual violence against women is always preceded by psychological bullying, and that this too needs to be outlawed.  But many lawyers and professionals in the field are nervous, our correspondent says.  They say it will impossible to say at what point verbal abuse - for instance in an argument - suddenly becomes a criminal offence.
Critics argue the psychological violence clause is unlikely to make any practical improvement to the lives of women who suffer domestic violence

Click HERE to read article.

Twelve states in the US have passed similar legislation and about 5,000 domestic abusers are being tracked nationwide, said George Drake, who oversees Colorado’s Electronic Monitoring Resource Center, which gathers data from equipment vendors.


It is hard to protect families who live in rural areas or where there are not enough police officers to respond quickly. With the economic downturn, states have cut money for training the police and judges in GPS use, and some places with legislation in place say they cannot afford it.

“Using GPS monitoring to enforce an order of protection makes the order more than just a piece of paper,” said Diane Rosenfeld, a lecturer at Harvard Law School and a longtime advocate of using GPS in domestic abuse cases. “It’s a way of making the criminal justice system treat domestic violence as potentially serious. By detecting any escalation in the behavior of a batterer, GPS can prevent these unnecessary tragedies.”
There are many questions that will all require answers.  That being said, it is a very interesting idea that I think deserves more development and can obviously be a great asset to law enforcement.
 
Oram Security