The Victorian government is launching a trial of electronic monitoring bracelets for young people charged with serious offences.
The trial would see young people fitted with the ankle bracelets to ensure their bail conditions are being met.
The monitoring bracelets alert police if conditions such as curfews are being broken, which would trigger bail to be revoked.
The government has said a small number of reoffenders are driving an increase in serious offences committed by young people.
Attorney-General Jaclyn Symes said the monitoring devices were an extra tool to ensure bail conditions were being met.
“Bail compliance is not optional and should be taken extremely seriously,” she said in a statement.
“If a person continues to abuse their bail conditions or commit further crime, it is our expectation that their bail is revoked.”
The move has been welcomed by Victoria’s Police Association, which called it “sensible and pragmatic”.
“Any measure that prevents a person from becoming a victim of crime to a recidivist offender, is one that the Police Association supports and one that the community will take comfort from,” Police Association secretary Wayne Gatt said.
“When everything else has failed, this is a way of protecting recidivist offenders from themselves. It is a positive alternative to jail.”