The sheriff's office is using it on a trial basis, but so far is having no problems with the device.

"I see no problem with it at this point," Holbrook said. "Probably for our minor offenders, it would be a good thing."

SecureAlert said it plans to expand its invention to alert victims of an offender's movements, such as domestic violence.

"The woman gets this," Olshen said, holding up a phone-like device near the TrackerPAL. "If he gets too close to her ... if the court order says 2,000 feet and this device gets too close to this device it sets off an alarm to us and to her. We're on the phone alerting her where he's at. At the same time we're on the phone to him telling him to stop in his tracks or we set of an alarm."

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E-mail: bwinslow@desnews.com