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Family of slain tourist urges data study of juvenile electronic monitoring; committee backs resolution
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Summary
After testimony from Jonathan Isaac Carter about his brother Jacob's murder and a reported monitoring-contract lapse, the committee voted to report HCR 7 requesting a statewide report on juveniles subject to electronic monitoring.
The House Criminal Justice Committee reported House Concurrent Resolution 7 after emotional testimony from Jonathan Isaac Carter, who said failures in electronic monitoring contributed to the murder of his brother, Jacob Carter.
Carter, who identified himself as Jacob's brother, described repeated monitoring violations by the juvenile who later killed Jacob and said records obtained via public records requests showed the offender "missed ... required check ins in the 105 day period before he went on to commit murder." Carter told the committee a six-month pilot contract with monitoring vendor Repath lapsed five days before the killing, leaving the offender unmonitored the morning of the murder.
Representative Landry framed the resolution as a request for an in-depth report from the Louisiana Department of Justice to gather basic data on how many juveniles are under electronic monitoring, the duration of monitoring, and outcomes for those youth. "Electronic monitoring is a powerful tool but this technology is only as effective as the adults overseeing it," Carter said, urging lawmakers to "honor Jacob's memory and pass this concurrent resolution." The committee, with no objections, agreed to report HCR 7 favorably.
The resolution asks state officials to collect and report data that members said would help assess whether monitoring is effective, whether youth receive rehabilitative services, and where oversight or coordination with Office of Juvenile Justice programs may be improved.
