Cost of Alcohol Ankle Monitoring Amounts to Extortion, Class Action Says

A group of plaintiffs recently filed a class action lawsuit against an ankle monitoring company, arguing that the alcohol and GPS tracking is extremely expensive and violates California law requiring individuals not be charged more than they can afford.

A group of four plaintiffs filed the class action lawsuit against Leaders in Community Alternatives and numerous other parties, alleging that the companies extort money from low-income Californians by charging large amounts to individuals subject to court-ordered alcohol monitoring and GPS tracking.

When an individual receives a court order for pre-trial or home detention monitoring in Alameda County, they are allegedly given an ankle monitoring device from Leaders in Community Alternatives.

Despite Alameda County ordering the monitoring, the individuals being monitored are allegedly responsible for the payment on monitoring fees. These fees can be extremely expensive and pose financial burden for already vulnerable citizens.

“Alameda County has looked the other way while LCA has demanded $25.50 per day — $765 per month, or $9,180 per year — from low-income individuals sentenced to wear its devices, despite California law requiring that individuals not be charged more than they are able to pay,” plaintiffs claim in the alcohol monitoring class action lawsuit.

Should individuals fall behind on their payments, Leaders in Community Alternatives allegedly threatens to inform the court that they are violating release conditions. This alleged threat is particularly effective as many individuals are on home detention to accommodate special circumstances.

For example, one plaintiff is on home detention to receive chemotherapy treatment and another is on home detention as the sole caretaker for their bed-ridden mother.

Plaintiffs argue that the behavior by Leaders in Community Alternatives is violating California law by charging excessive amounts for ankle monitoring services.

California law states: “No person shall be denied consideration for, or be removed from, participation in any of the programs to which this section applies because of an inability to pay all or a portion of the program supervision fees.”

Plaintiffs claim that, by charging an unmanageable amount and allegedly blocking attempts to reduce the price, Leaders in Community Alternatives is in violation of this law.

The ankle monitoring also calls out Alameda County, arguing that the county is complicit in the extortion of its citizens by Leaders in Community Alternatives.

“By failing to supervise LCA properly, Alameda County has a policy of allowing LCA to extract as much money as possible from people under its control, allowing it to extort money from every individual who is placed under its supervision by the county,” the ankle monitoring class action claims.

Plaintiffs seek to represent a Class of individuals who have been or will be put on any LCA monitoring program by the Alameda County Court system since 2013. The ankle monitoring class action seeks treble damage, punitive damage, court costs, and attorneys’ fees.

Plaintiffs are represented by Phil Telfeyan of Equal Justice Under Law.

The Ankle Monitoring Class Action Lawsuit is Edwards, et al. v. Leaders In Community Alternatives Inc., et al., Case No. 3:18-cv-04609-JSC, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.