1) May I go outside if I stay in the yard or on the porch at my residence?
Answer: Yes. If you own a home or are responsible for lawn care or snow removal, you may be given permission to be outside of your residence. However, you will be restricted to the boundaries of your yard. Please call and leave a message on the EM line prior to performing these extended time tasks. Other authorized reasons for being outside the home include retrieving mail, putting out/collecting trash receptacles, pet clean-up, smoking on porch/balcony, and using grill for cooking only. Examples of unauthorized access outside the home include but are not limited to: eating outside, lounging/tanning, swimming in a pool/lake on your property, talking to neighbors, etc.
2) I live in an apartment building and the laundry facilities are in the basement. Am I allowed to go to the basement?
Answer: Yes. If you live in an apartment building you will be allowed to access the laundry facilities or the dumpsters for garbage. You may not be away from your apartment for an extended period of time, and the electronic monitoring equipment will notify the office of the length of time. If excessive leaves are noted, you may be disciplined or even removed from the program.
3) May I have visitors at my residence?
Answer: No. The only persons allowed in the residence are those that sign the roommate consent form and actually reside at the home (Ex: spouse, parents, your children or children of the previous, and/or roommates). Subjects having shared custody of children will be allowed to have the exchange take place at the doorway of the residence. Your ride will be able to pull into your driveway (if applies). Let the EM office know of any scheduled maintenance/repair services. You do not have to advise for UPS type mail deliveries.
4) I don’t drive, what if my ride has to make some stops along the way while I am in the vehicle?
Answer: This is not allowed. If they have errands to do, they will have to drop you off first at home or run their errands before they pick you up. During your travel to and from work or appointments you may stop at gas stations or drive thru restaurants (you are not allowed to go in the restaurant; drive thru only). All other stops, unless pre-approved by an electronic monitoring officer, are not allowed and will be considered an unauthorized stop. Remember, you are being monitored by a Global Positioning System, and your GPS tracks are evaluated continually by our office.
5) Am I allowed to go grocery shopping?
Answer: Yes-if you live alone or have a roommate. If you have a spouse or boyfriend/girlfriend that lives with you, this responsibility will be placed on them, and you will not be allowed to go along with them to do the shopping. If you live alone, or live with just a roommate, you will be allowed 2 hours a week for grocery shopping to buy food for the household. This means stores such as Pick ‘N’ Save or Wal-Mart are appropriate. Any other types of business that do not sell grocery items are not allowed. This allotted time is specifically for grocery shopping and not to run errands, unless pre-approved by an electronic monitoring officer. You will arrange what store and time frame for shopping with the EM Officer during orientation and this will generally be permanent, with very good reasons for changing location or timeframe.
6) How do I pay for my Huber fees? Can I stop at a bank?
Answer: You will still be required to pay your Huber fees on time (Fridays before 9pm). When you are out for work, or an appointment, stop at your bank if need be, and come to the jail to put your Huber fees in the Kiosk machine ($2 Cash Fee or 10% Credit Card Transaction Fee). This does not need prior approval from our office if you are already out and doing this during your travel to and from, but keep in mind you will still need to abide by your curfew to be home on time. If additional time is needed for this, you will need prior approval from the electronic monitoring office. If you are not leaving your residence for anything and need to pay or go to your bank, call the Electronic Monitoring office and arrange a time when you would like to leave your residence to come to the jail to pay your Huber fees. You may have to leave a message and wait for confirmation from the office, so plan ahead to make sure your Huber fees are paid on time and up to date. You may add money to your own inmate account through the website JailATM.com, but transaction fees apply. You may also mail in your Huber fees with a money order made payable to the Washington County Jail, which will be added with the $2 fee.
7) How much does the Electronic Monitoring program cost?
Answer: As of January 1st 2019, the Electronic Monitoring fees are $30.00 a day/$210.00 a week. Keep in mind the additional transaction fees on top of the base fees. There is no additional cost other than this fee to be enrolled on the program unless there is intentional damage to the electronic monitoring equipment, which could make you liable for up to $1500.00 in replacement costs and/or criminally prosecuted. But if the equipment is used properly and not tampered with, there should not be any damage with standard use.
8) Can I work more hours if I am enrolled on the Electronic Monitoring program?
Answer: No. The same guidelines apply as Huber work release. You will be limited to 12 hours a day, 6 days a week that you can be away from your residence for work and appointments. You must have at least one “in day” where you do not have any work or appointments scheduled for the day and are to remain inside your house. Self employed inmates are limited to working 10 hours a day, 5 days a week.
9) Can I go into a restaurant?
Answer: No, you are only allowed to go to drive thru’s. You are allowed inside of gas stations.
10) Can I shower with the GPS unit on?
Answer: Yes, the GPS Tracking Device is waterproof. There is no need to cover it up while showering/bathing.
Some additional things to know while you are enrolled on the Electronic Monitoring Program.
If you have been selected to be enrolled on the program, you are being given an opportunity that not many people qualify for. Appreciate this opportunity to serve your sentence under house arrest and be home with your family. Follow the rules of Electronic Monitoring, and consider the alternative before you risk being removed from the program. The best advice is to have good communication between you and the monitoring office and officers if you have any questions or concerns.
While you are enrolled on the program, you will be visited at your residence by a Correctional Officer from the Washington County Jail. We try to make contact with everyone on the program on a daily basis, and you may be asked to submit to a breathalyzer or asked to report to the jail for a urine analysis to screen for drugs. As with the Huber program, absolute sobriety is required. Be aware that you may be visited by a Correctional Officer more than once a day, and the home visits are random and unannounced. The home visits are usually brief, as long as there are no problems. If you have any questions or need approval for something, you may ask the officer doing the home visit.