‘street-level surveillance’: Human agency and the electronic monitoring of offenders

Abstract

Recent years have witnessed an increase in new ‘technologies of control’ that decrease reliance upon labour intensive forms of policing. The electronic monitoring of offenders represents just one section of the expanding industry in ‘techno-corrections’ that incorporates elements of the private security, military and telecommunications industries. The surveillance capacity generated by these industries has diverted attention away from the role of human agency in the implementation of surveillance services. This paper is concerned with the reliance of ‘technologies of control’ upon ‘street-level surveillance’ which involves a shift in focus away from the capacity of surveillance technologies and towards the actions of agents of control, offenders and the local community, in ensuring the successful operation of electronic monitoring services.