UnicusID

(Carmen Rodgers) State Representative Mike Holmes, Tallassee Mayor John Hammock, Elmore County Commissioner Desirae Lewis, Tony Amarosa, Michael Taylor, ECEDA’s Cary Cox, councilman Bill Hall, UnicusID VP of sales Randy Montz, Tallassee IDB’s Rick Dorley, councilman Fred Randall Huey, Blair Graham, Heidi Love, and Tallassee Chamber of Commerce director Jerry Cunningham held a ribbon-cutting for UnicusID on Monday, April 19.

City, county, and state officials met inside the Tallassee Industrial Park on Monday, April 19, to attend a ribbon-cutting for UnicusID. UnicusID produces biometric wrist bracelets that use the latest tracking technology. UnicusID biometrics is used to monitor parolees and has been shown to reduce recidivism rates.

"This is for those who are trying to get back in the workforce, a DUI case, something of that nature. We know where they are and who they are," UnicusID's VP of sales Randy Montz said.

The wrist bracelet that looks much like a large smartwatch uses facial recognition to identify the wearer. Using the latest GPS technology, UnicusID can better monitor an induvial's movements.

"We can set geofencing that is allowed or prohibited," Montz said. A geofence is a virtual perimeter for a geographic region. A geo-fence can generate and create a radius around a certain location, or a geo-fence can also be a defined set of boundaries. If someone wearing this device enters a prohibited area, their caseworker will receive a notification.

"You can go here. You can't go there and if you do, someone gets notified," Montz said.

Not only is this new technology used to track offenders, but it can also be beneficial to a victim.

"We can set their it for home, their work, the place they shop, where ever they need to have that comfort. If that person (the offender) enters that area, a parole officer and the victim will be notified so they can remove themselves from that area. We wanted to make another level of safety for them," Montz said.

The newest UnicusID facility in Tallassee will employ 30 people to begin with. UnicusID is was founded in Alabama in 2017. It is a leading developer in biometric identification. The company created and patented a Mobile Biometric Authentication Platform. UnicusID's initial product, the Shepherd System is used across the country.