A new paperless offender tracking system for nation-wide use was introduced on October 6, 2008 by the Interstate Commission for Adult Supervision (Interstate Compact). The system is the Interstate Compact Offender Tracking System (ICOTS). Indiana participated in the ICOTS startup as a pilot state, along with Arkansas, Kentucky, North Carolina, and Ohio. The national office used lessons learned by the pilot states to assist with this nation-wide launch and in the publication of two documents: “Lessons Learned from the Pilot” and “ICOTS Implementation Guide”.
The launch of ICOTS was a major milestone for the Interstate Commission’s national office and Appriss, the system vendor. Their teams worked diligently for 15 months to make ICOTS a reality. The Indiana Judicial Center thanks judges and probation officers for their patience and cooperation. All 53 member jurisdictions of the Interstate Compact are now addressing the challenges of implementing a national database.
Indiana courts are well aware of the importance of the Interstate Compact for Adult Offender Supervision as it is the sole statutory authority for transferring the supervision of adult probationers and parolees across state lines. The mission of the Interstate Compact is to guide the transfer of offender supervision across state lines in a manner that promotes effective supervision strategies consistent with public safety, offender accountability, and victims’ rights. The Interstate Compact for Adult Supervision was enacted in 2004, and all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands are signatories to the Compact and have agreed to abide by its rules. The predecessor to the Interstate Compact for Adult Offender Supervision was the Interstate Compact for Supervision of Parolees and Probationers, which was enacted in 1937. The Judicial Center administers the Interstate Compact for probationers. The Department of Correction administers the Interstate Compact for parolees.
The Bylaws of the Interstate Compact require all courts and executive agencies in each member state to enforce the Compact and take all necessary actions to effectuate its purposes. Failure to comply with the terms of the Compact could result in a state defaulting on its contractual obligations under the Compact and could lead to the Commission taking remedial or punitive action against it. Judges should know that the Interstate Compact does not impact the sentencing of an offender, only how the offender is supervised over state lines. Under the rules of the Interstate Compact, eligible offenders must apply for transfer and await acceptance or reporting instructions from the other state before leaving the sentencing state. There are exceptions for allowing out-of-state offenders to return home immediately after being sentenced to probation, but the transfer process must still be followed.
An offender is eligible for transfer under the Interstate Compact if these conditions are met:
1) any felony conviction, or a misdemeanor conviction for one of the following offenses:
a) a second or subsequent DUI;
b) a sex offense requiring registration in the sending state or receiving state;
c) an offense involving possession/use of a firearm; and,
d) an offense in which a victim incurred direct or threatened physical/psychological harm; and,
2) a sentence of community supervision (this includes even “informal probation”).
The Compact rules cover many other areas in addition to the ones discussed here. Judges and probation officers with questions about Compact application and offender eligibility are encouraged to contact the Judicial Center. The Interstate Commission has an excellent website with resources for judges and probation officers. The website has ICOTS news, the Compact rules and bylaws, on-demand training modules, advisory opinions, a Benchbook for judges, best practice tips, contact information for each of the member states, and perhaps most importantly, log-in for the ICOTS system. This information and more is available online at www.adultcompact.org.