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A suspect recently encountered an unusual obstacle in complying with house arrest requirements: the necessity of wearing an electronic monitoring ankle bracelet—something he cannot do because he lacks ankles. Authorities, however, claim that this did not contribute to any delays in his legal proceedings.
Steven Min, who faces several charges related to trespassing, experienced a delay in transitioning to house arrest. His lawyer explained to the media that this delay stemmed from “a physical inability to wear a mandatory electronic ankle monitor,” according to a report by the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Min’s situation is complicated by the fact that he uses prosthetic legs, a consequence of losing his legs and left hand to a sepsis infection, reportedly contracted during a previous stint in city jail. To accommodate his condition, Min was ultimately provided with an electronic monitoring device intended for his wrist.
Min’s attorney, Joseph Reiff, voiced his concerns in a recent Clark County, Nevada court session, expressing discontent with the decision to use a wrist bracelet, which he described as “appalling.”
“He’s only got one limb, judge,” Reiff stated, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “They’re going to make sure that he doesn’t have any. This is made for a person’s ankle, and everybody knows a person’s legs are two or three times stronger.”
Reiff reportedly argued that his client also suffers from end-stage renal and kidney diseases, which could complicate his incarceration, and pointed out that Min requires more dialysis care than the jail can provide. Metropolitan Police Attorney Michael Dickerson stated, per the outlet, that Min was not denied dialysis care and disputed that “anything was delayed” for Min.
Reiff did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Oxygen.
In court, according to the Journal-Review, Reiff shared a March 3 email, reportedly from the Metropolitan Police Department, which addressed Min’s case.
“Our program uses an ankle monitor for its GPS tracking,” the email read, according to the Review-Journal. “This is the only authorized and available equipment for Electronic Monitoring and GPS tracking. Unfortunately, Mr. Min does not have the capability for our Officers to apply our device.”
Dickerson denied that Min’s disability is relevant to house arrest, according to the Review-Journal, instead pointing to Min having at least one active warrant.
“There’s nothing inhumane about monitoring Mr. Min by putting the bracelet on his arm,” Dickerson said, per the outlet. “People wear bracelets and watches every day. This is no different.”
According to Reiff, on March 11, Min was released from jail, per the Review-Journal, but quickly taken into custody again.
As a Metropolitan Police spokesperson reportedly told the outlet, “A compliance check revealed he was in violation of the conditions of his electronic monitoring program.”
A spokesperson from the Metropolitan Police Department did not immediately reply to a request for comment from Oxygen.