Greensboro, NC -- The issue of domestic violence has been in the forefront in the Triad after a shooting last week left three people dead.
Different ways to protect victims have been discussed and one option uses GPS technology to monitor offenders.
The Sherri Dense Jackson Foundation is a local group pushing for the use of the GPS monitoring here.
Lyn Twyman is the group's national advisor and the Deputy Director of the National Domestic Violence Registry.
"GPS monitoring for domestic violence offenders has the ability to save lives. That is the bottom line," she told WFMY New 2 via Skype Monday night.
"It makes me feel very sad and very grieved that we have used this technology now for several years for everything else except the one social issue and epidemic that is claiming lives just as well by the masses," she said about the GPS technology.
The Pitt County Sheriff's Office in Greenville uses a GPS monitoring system for domestic violence offenders, and Twyman would like to see that implemented across the country.
"This is a technology that is not going away and people are realizing the value and it's up the community, victims, survivors and people who just care about victims and lives, it doesn't matter if it's a woman, a man, or a child, it's up to all of us to come together and say, 'I support this,'" she said.
Twyman said about 20 states have passed legislation authorizing GPS use to monitor domestic violence offenders. All of the programs are different, she said. Some will require an offender to wear a monitoring bracelet if he violates a restraining order. In other cases, a judge will require an offender to wear one if there is strong reason to believe he will violate the restraining order.
As for who pays for the technology, Twyman said in some states, the offender pays to wear the device. Some states, however, require state funding or grants.
The Sherri Jackson Foundation is planning a conference call this week with different agencies and groups, including the Guilford County Sheriff's Office, to learn more about the GPS monitoring for domestic violence offenders.