Boulder-based BI Inc. tracks offenders through GPS equipment

BOULDER, Colo. — With jail and prison systems overcrowded across the country, Boulder-based company BI Inc. is in the business of providing alternatives to incarceration. Specializing in GPS and radio tracking for parolees, probationers and pre-trial defendants, BI focuses on providing equipment that allows non-violent offenders to stay out of jail, but still under the watch of local authorities. For example, DUI arrestees can receive constant monitoring and sobriety tests without having to go to jail.

"That person continues to be viable by having a job, paying taxes and remaining in the community," said Bruce Thacher, CEO of BI Inc.

The devices are about the size of a pager and are strapped to one's ankle with tampering detectors. The most accurate units can track people down to about a 10-foot circle in near-real time. Future devices may be able to check alcohol levels from perspiration.

BI was founded in Boulder in 1978 originally as a cattle-monitoring service, but shifted its technology to defendant tracking from the urging of a local judge. Today, the 30-year-old company has expanded its services to correctional agencies across the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, Guam and Australia.

Despite having a global presence, BI keeps its main tracking center — called the BI GuardCenter — in Anderson, Ind., as opposed to outsourcing it to cut costs.

"We're dealing with public safety," Thacher said. "There is quite a bit of know-how; employees need to understand the local geography and technology, and we're just not high-volume enough for it to make sense to go overseas."

At any given time, the GuardCenter tracks around 30,000 offenders around the clock, every day of the year. They have monitored more than 4 million offenders since BI started the GuardCenter in 1985.

Locally, the Colorado Department of Corrections monitors about 2,500 offenders with GPS systems and drive-by radio tracking devices on a daily basis.

"We used to have to go check on offenders directly at their home or work," said Tim Hand, assistant deputy director of the Colorado Department of Corrections. "Now we can use a drive-by unit to check on the offender and not disturb the employee or employer. It doesn't interfere with daily lives as much."

BI also offers counseling and rehabilitation services, so that there's a greater chance of the offender staying out of trouble. With the economy struggling, BI is noticing a bump in business as governments turn more to alternative criminal justice programs. BI has hired 100 to 150 people in the past three years, bringing its total workforce to around 700. Around 160 people work in its Boulder headquarters.

At BI's Boulder manufacturing plant, employees keep a close eye on production, said Victor Rompa, the company's director of product development.

"If we say this person made a violation," he said, "we want to make sure it's the case. We don't want to send the wrong people to jail."

-- By Teague Anderson For the Camera

Originally at - www.dailycamera.com