Philadelphia hearing questions wide use of GPS monitoring for justice-involved youth

Philadelphia City Council held a joint public hearing Nov. 1 to examine the use of electronic monitoring and GPS ankle monitors for youth involved in the city’s juvenile justice system.

The hearing brought youth and family advocates, representatives of the device vendor Trak Group, probation and Department of Human Services officials, the Defender Association, the district attorney’s office and academic researchers into the same room as council members to discuss whether GPS serves as a safety tool or an extension of surveillance.

Young people and community advocates described pervasive harms tied to monitoring. “Being a kid with GPS is not treatment for me. It is embarrassing being outside with a block on your ankle,” 19‑year‑old Joshua Levin told the committees, saying the device kept him from work, programming and stable housing. Another youth, Levi Sirleaf, said he was confined to his home, “even had to get permission to step outside my front door,” and described a false violation he said probation initially reported before the matter was cleared.

Paris Bright, a court advocate with YEAH Philly, said the city’s use of ankle monitors “is not about guidance nor growth. Its primary focus is controlling youth.” Co‑CEO Kendra Vanderwater said national research shows monitoring does not reduce recidivism and that “families often face hundreds of dollars in monitoring fees,” calling for public reporting of who is monitored, for how long and who profits from vendor contracts.

City and court officials described GPS as a tool intended to keep young people in the community rather than in secure…