GPS abuser tracking expands, but is flawed

WASHINGTON, May 9 (UPI) -- While at least 13 states, including Indiana, now track stalkers with global positioning systems, it's still difficult to protect families, authorities said.

Nationwide, an estimated 5,000 stalkers and domestic abusers are being tracked but some communities have cut money for training police and judges in GPS use, The New York Times reported Saturday.

Alexis A. Moore, 34, alleges her former partner violated a restraining order more than 30 times in four years, including slashing her tires, but she had no way to prove it because police in her area cannot afford GPS monitoring, the Times reported.

"My stalker continues to make a game of getting away with restraining order violations -- because he can," said Moore, founder of Survivors in Action, a non-profit group for crime victims.

Experts, who acknowledge abusers can remove the device, said GPS monitoring still remains an effective tool in the fight against repeat violence.

"By detecting any escalation in the behavior of a batterer, GPS can prevent these unnecessary tragedies," said Diane Rosenfeld, a lecturer at Harvard Law School and advocate of GPS monitoring.