Inmates at the Harford County Detention Center are the first in Maryland to be offered a wristband to track their vital signs — new technology aimed at catching medical emergencies faster, and easing the workload of medical personnel, according to Sheriff Jeff Gahler.
Though proponents say it will increase safety for inmates with health concerns, others, such as the ACLU, fear the devices may amount to an invasion of privacy when nonconsensual. Inmates in Harford County have a choice about wearing the wristband Gahler said at a news conference Wednesday where staff demonstrated the technology.
The detention center started using the wristbands July 29, and 148 inmates have voluntarily enrolled in the program, said Warden Daniel Galbraith, adding that the Sheriff’s Office is paying about $100,000 this year for 30 “OverWatch” wristbands from 4Sight Labs. The program is expected to cost about $66,000 annually after the first year, and is optional for inmates.
The device monitors skin temperature, hourly pulse rate, stress levels, sleep quality, movement and more. Gahler said the wristband can improve safety for inmates with serious physical and mental health issues, substance abuse challenges and suicidal ideations.
“We can’t be everywhere at once,” said program manager Lt. Christopher Rosette about the need for the technology. Nationwide, 63 other facilities use the wristbands, 4Sight CEO David Sanders said.
Galbraith said the wristbands ease the burden on detention center staff, who can’t monitor every high-risk individual at the same time. The detention center currently has 13 job vacancies, and Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Cristie Hopkins told The Aegis that hiring has been more difficult for both corrections and law enforcement. The agency is undergoing a salary study to determine why they have fallen behind, “under the current county administration.”
Hopkins said the wristbands are meant to be an “extra tool” for inmate safety and “absolutely not” a substitution for a staff member.
“Inmates come in here with health issues. They don’t magically go away,” Gahler said at a Wednesday news conference. “Advancements in technology create opportunities to better serve this at-risk population.”
David Fathi, director of the ACLU National Prison Project, said privacy concerns are reduced when wristband use is optional — although there is concern with detention centers nationwide who use the wristbands as a replacement for staffing shortages.
Every inmate that enters the detention center is offered the wristband by a deputy, Galbraith said, and medical staff educates inmates on the device.
“History shows that inmates are at the highest risk of medical complications or suicidal ideation during their first 24 hours of incarceration,” Galbraith said.
There are only 30 devices at the detention center, where the daily population averages 330 inmates. Inmates wear the wristband for an average of three to five days.
Gahler’s goal is to expand the number of wristbands as funding allows to give each inmate the option to wear the device.
Harford County has recorded two deaths in custody since October 2019, according to available data from the Governor’s Office of Crime Prevention and Policy. One was ruled a suicide while the cause of the other is listed as “pending.”
The medical wristband program has helped in at least two emergencies, according to Galbraith.
In one emergency, the device detected a sudden and severe drop in an inmate’s oxygen saturation level, and the man was found unresponsive in his cell. The wristband allowed intervention in seconds, Galbraith said.
“Rather than discovering the crisis during the next scheduled security round, medical personnel were able to stabilize the inmate,” Galbraith said. “Facility medical leadership confirmed that without the wristband’s early warning, the outcome could have been significantly worse.”
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