Bail, Bail Bonds

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not provide information on the cost of implementing the system, the number of defendants affected annually, or what happens if a defendant cannot afford a GPS monitoring device.

Global Positioning Monitoring for Certain Offenses

This bill requires courts to order defendants accused of certain offenses to wear a global positioning monitoring system as a condition of bail unless they no longer pose a threat to the victim or public safety.

What This Bill Does

• Requires courts and magistrates to order defendants arrested for specific crimes, such as carrying weapons during an offense, domestic assault, burglary of vehicles, reckless driving, drag racing, and repeat thefts or burglaries, to wear GPS monitoring devices if they are released on bail.
• Specifies that the court must find the defendant no longer poses a threat to the victim or public safety before not requiring GPS monitoring.
• Requires clerks in each court to report monthly how many defendants are wearing GPS monitors and what crimes they were charged with.
• Directs the administrative office of the courts to compile an annual report on these numbers, including totals for each county, by July 1st each year.

Who It Names or Affects

• Defendants arrested for specific offenses listed in the bill who are released on bail.
• Courts and magistrates responsible for setting bail conditions.
• Clerks of courts required to report monthly data.
• The administrative office of the courts tasked with compiling annual reports.

Terms To Know

Global Positioning Monitoring System

A device that tracks a person's location using GPS technology.

Limits and Unknowns

• The bill does not specify the cost of implementing this system.
• It is unclear how many defendants will be affected by this requirement each year.
• There are no details on what happens if a defendant cannot afford to wear a GPS monitoring device.

Official Summary Text

Following the arrest of a defendant for any of the following offenses, this bill requires the court or magistrate to order the defendant to wear a global positioning monitoring system device as a condition of bail, unless the court or magistrate finds the
offender no longer poses a threat to the alleged victim or public safety:



An offense, during the course of which (i) the defendant carried, possessed, or used a firearm or dangerous weapon; (ii) a person was killed or suffered serious bodily injury; or (iii) the defendant used force against the person of another
.


Domestic assault
.


Burglary of a freight or passenger car, automobile, truck, trailer, boat, airplane, or other motor vehicle
.


Reckless driving
.


Drag Racing
.


A second or subsequent offense constituting burglary or theft offenses
.

This bill requires the clerk of each court that orders the use of global positioning monitoring pursuant to this bill to report the number of defendants currently subject to such an order and the offenses for which the defendant is awaiting trial on a mo
nthly basis to the administrative office of the courts. The administrative office of the courts must compile an annual report of the number of defendants subject to such an order, including totals for each county, to be submitted to the committee of the
ho
use of representatives with jurisdiction over criminal justice and the judiciary committee of the senate by July 1 of each year.

Current Bill Text

SENATE BILL 2665
By Akbari

HOUSE BILL 2296
By Hardaway
HB2296
012587
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AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 39;
Title 40 and Title 55, relative to global positioning
monitoring.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 40, Chapter 11, Part 1, is amended by
adding the following new section:
(a) Following the arrest of a person for an offense listed in subsection (b), the
court or magistrate shall order the defendant to wear a global positioning monitoring
system device as a condition of bail as set forth in § 40-11-152(b)(2), unless the court or
magistrate finds the offender no longer poses a threat to the alleged victim or public
safety.
(b) This section applies to a defendant arrested for:
(1) An offense, during the course of which:
(A) The defendant carried, possessed, or used a firearm or
dangerous weapon;
(B) A person was killed or suffered serious bodily injury; or
(C) The defendant used force against the person of another;
(2) Domestic assault, under § 39-13-111;
(3) Burglary of a freight or passenger car, automobile, truck, trailer, boat,
airplane, or other motor vehicle, under § 39-13-1002(a)(4);
(4) Reckless driving, under § 55-10-205;
(5) Drag racing, under § 55-10-502; or

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(6) A second or subsequent offense under title 39, chapter 13, part 10 or
title 39, chapter 14, part 1.
(c) The clerk of each court that orders the use of global positioning monitoring
pursuant to subsection (a) shall report the number of defendants currently subject to
such an order and the offenses for which the defendant is awaiting trial on a monthly
basis to the administrative office of the courts. The administrative office of the courts
shall compile an annual report of the number of defendants subject to such an order,
including totals for each county, to be submitted to the committee of the house of
representatives with jurisdiction over criminal justice and the judiciary committee of the
senate by July 1 of each year.
SECTION 2. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 40-11-152(b)(2), is amended by
deleting the language:
Pursuant to § 40-11-150(n), if the court or magistrate finds probable cause to
believe that one (1) or more of the circumstances in§ 40-11-150(n)(1) did occur, then
unless the court or magistrate finds the offender no longer poses a threat to the alleged
victim or public safety and makes such a finding in a written order, the court or
magistrate shall order a defendant who is charged with the offense of aggravated
assault, as defined in § 39-13-102(a)(1)(A)(i), (a)(1)(A)(iii), or (a)(1)(A)(iv), in which the
alleged victim of the offense is a domestic abuse victim, as defined in § 36-3-601, to do
the following as a condition of bail:
and substituting instead:
Pursuant to § 40-11-150(n) and SECTION 1, if the court or magistrate finds
probable cause to believe that one (1) or more of the circumstances in § 40-11-150(n)(1)
or SECTION 1(b) did occur, then unless the court or magistrate finds the offender no
longer poses a threat to the alleged victim or public safety and makes such a finding in a

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written order, the court or magistrate shall order the defendant to do the following as a
condition of bail:
SECTION 3. This act takes effect July 1, 2026, the public welfare requiring it.