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By Harriette Halepis

Source acquired via Global Research, May 6, 2010, California – There’s a new GPS tracking law in California, and it’s being met with some heavy scepticism. “Chelsea’s Law” states that anyone convicted of sexually violating a child 14 years of age of younger will be sentenced to a lifetime of GPS tracking. Using the state’s VenTrack program, law enforcement officials will actively follow the movements of any convicted sex offenders.

Sex Offenders & GPS Tracking

Chelsea’s Law is part of a new GPS tracking initiative instilled by Governor Schwarzenegger who has already spent more than $80 million dollars in GPS tracking technology and equipment. There are two different types of people who oppose the GPS portion of Chelsea’s Law. Some people believe that the state of California cannot afford to spend any more money tracking criminals. Others believe that tracking a criminal for a lifetime is a complete violation of civil rights.

Civil rights advocates believe that once a criminal has served time for a crime, this crime should be pushed aside. In addition, civil rights groups have stated that forcing a criminal to wear a GPS tracking bracelet for a lifetime will prevent these people from becoming an active part of society. Gaining a job or renting a home may be rather difficult for people who wear GPS tracking anklets.

Those who believe that the state of California cannot afford to track people indefinitely worry that this new law will bankrupt the state. These protestors argue that in order to track a criminal, additional law enforcement personnel must be hired, which is an expensive ordeal. After all, it’s relatively hard to track anyone without someone paying constant attention.

Whether or not Chelsea’s Law takes GPS tracking to an extreme is unclear. What is clear is the fact that those who sexually violate children within the state of California will not be able to get away with this crime. It should also be noted that the tracking of criminals in other states has been proven to be entirely effective. For now, Chelsea’s Law stands, and this has many people feeling rather uneasy.