All too often, new police surveillance tools are initially applied to only the “worst of the worst” and then slowly—but surely—expanded to include an ever-growing number of less culpable individuals. We’ve seen it with DNA collection. And now we’re starting to see it with GPS tracking. That’s why last week EFF filed an amicus brief with the United States Court of Appeal for the Seventh Circuit urging the court to strike down a Wisconsin statute that required certain individuals—including individuals who already fully served their criminal sentences—to wear GPS ankle bracelets every day for the rest of their lives. Wisconsin enacted Wis. Stat. § 301.48 back in 2006. The law, among other things, imposed lifetime GPS monitoring on individuals who committed certain specified sexual violence offenses. The law applied to any person released from jail, prison, treatment, or involuntary civil commitment after January 1,…
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