RS starts monitoring domestic violence aggressors with cell phones and electronic anklets

With a court decision issued in Canoas, a city in the metropolitan region of Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul starts a pioneering project to monitor aggressors with electronic anklets and follow-up in real time to avoid approaching them.

In the case in question, the man had already been arrested for threatening and failing to comply with an urgent protective measure. The expectation is that other magistrates will issue authorizations of this type, with the aim of preventing cases of femicide.

After installing the ankle bracelet on the aggressor, the victim received a cell phone with an application connected to the monitoring system of the State Security Secretariat (SSP).

In the event of an approach, the equipment will issue an alert and, if the aggressor does not retreat and exceed the distance determined by the protective measure, the application will show a map in real time and alert the victim, in addition to the monitoring center.

With the second alert, the nearest Military Brigade garrison will be called to attend the scene. The exclusion zone determined by the Judiciary will be kept confidential.

The director of the Women’s Protection Division of the Civil Police in RS, Cristiane Ramos, estimates that the project will encourage more women to seek help.

“We are already being contacted by other states to know and understand the proposal. We also think that more women will seek help. According to our data, 90% of women victims of feminicide in 2023 did not have protective measures, ”she said.

The delegate also points out that tests were carried out for a semester until the project was effectively implemented. Ramos also points out that the State sought more robust equipment, in order to avoid breaking the anklets.

“The approach represents a risk to the lives of these victims of domestic violence. For this reason, equipment with greater resistance was sought. We also thought about the cell phone so that the victim does not suffer any stigmatization, since no one will notice that the cell phone is for this purpose (alert to the aggressor approaching). She will be able to rest assured and will only be warned of the criminal’s approach if he insists on getting close, “she pointed out.

The anklets, acquired through a contract with a Swiss company, are made with titanium locks, which sustain more than 150 kg of pressure. When trying to pull or cut, the internal sensors immediately send alarm signals to the SSP monitoring center.