Most ankle monitor violations fall into four groups: tampering with the device, crossing a zone boundary, breaking curfew, and letting the battery run out. Each one sends an alert to the monitoring center and your assigned officer, on average in under a minute. What happens after that is decided by your officer or court, not the device.
Rules are set by your court or supervising officer. If anything here differs from what they told you, follow their instructions.
1. Tampering
The X14 has a fiber optic strap plus sensors in the housing. Cutting or stretching the strap, forcing the clasp or opening the housing triggers an immediate tamper alert to the monitoring center and your officer.
Accidents happen: a strap caught on something, a knock against a door frame. If the device is damaged by accident, call the 24/7 monitoring center at (336) 307-6162 straight away. Reporting it quickly protects you.
2. Zone violations
Your case manager can set two kinds of zones. Entering an exclusion zone, such as a protected person's address, sends an alert. So does leaving an inclusion zone you're required to stay in, such as your home during set hours. The device reports every 30 seconds, and every report is checked against your zones automatically. Our guide to how far you can go on an ankle monitor explains how these boundaries are set.
3. Curfew breaks
With curfew monitoring, the system logs the exact time you arrive at or leave an approved location and compares it with your curfew window. Arriving late or leaving early is a curfew break, and it routes straight to your officer, day or night.
4. Letting the battery run out
The battery lasts about 5 days. Both you and the monitoring center get an alert well before it runs out, but a dead device can't report where you are, so treat low-battery warnings seriously. The fix is a routine: charging takes about 2 hours on the clip-on charger, and you keep the device on while it charges.
What about losing cell signal?
Signal loss is not the same thing as a violation. The device switches between two cellular networks automatically, and if both drop it stores up to 72 hours of location history and sends it when the signal returns. If you're on the House Arrest App, missed connectivity is logged and flagged rather than counted as a violation. A missed check-in still goes to your officer.
What happens after an alert
- The device reports its position or a tamper or battery event.
- The platform checks it against your zones, curfew and schedule.
- Your officer is notified, on average in under 60 seconds, with a live monitoring center specialist standing by.
- Your officer reviews the timestamped record and decides the response.
Every alert becomes part of a timestamped record that pretrial programs and probation officers use in reviews and court hearings. The response depends on your conditions and history: it could be a phone call or a report to the court. Your officer or attorney can tell you how your program handles alerts.
An alert isn't a verdict. It's information your officer reviews. The best thing you can do when something goes wrong is call first.
How to avoid false alarms
- Charge on a fixed daily routine, not when you remember.
- Know your zone boundaries and curfew times, and leave yourself slack.
- Ask before any schedule change or trip, not after.
- Never adjust, loosen or open the device yourself.
- Save the monitoring center's number in your phone and call the moment something seems wrong.
Frequently asked questions
What counts as tampering with an ankle monitor?
Cutting or stretching the strap, forcing the clasp or opening the device housing. Each one triggers an immediate tamper alert to the monitoring center and your officer.
Does a low battery count as a violation?
The device warns you and the monitoring center well before the battery runs out. A device that dies can no longer report your location, so charge it on a routine and act on low-battery warnings.
Will losing cell signal get me in trouble?
Signal loss is not the same as a violation. The device switches between two networks and stores up to 72 hours of location history, sending it when the signal returns.
How fast is my officer notified of a violation?
On average in under 60 seconds, with a live specialist at the monitoring center standing by.
Who decides what happens after a violation?
Your supervising officer or court. The monitoring system reports what happened; the response depends on your conditions and history.
How we handle every alert
Encryption, audit logs, court-ready reporting and a staffed monitoring center, around the clock.
Guardian GPS Team
Product updates and field notes from the people building Guardian GPS Monitoring.
