JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (WWSB) – A revived Florida program aims to provide free wearable tracking devices for qualifying people at risk of wandering.
Rep. Wyman Duggan, a Jacksonville Republican, said Project Leo could help families and first responders begin searching more quickly when someone is missing.
Two children under the age of 10 with autism drowned in separate retention ponds in Jacksonville in August 2026.
“What this device could do is hopefully ensure against a similar tragedy befalling a family,” Duggan said. “When the child goes in the water, minutes matter. And to know where to start looking, rather than frantically running around the neighborhood trying to guess, this is going to make a game-changing, life-changing difference.”
Project Leo provides wearable devices that use GPS or radio-frequency technology. Duggan said a parent whose child wanders could activate a tracking safety program through the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office to help locate the child.
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“This can make a difference between life and death,” Duggan said. “And when they’re missing, now you’re making a guess as to where the child might be.”
Duggan helped revive the program after it expired in 2019. The legislation passed unanimously in the Florida House and Senate and took effect July 1.
The state dedicated $1 million to purchase the devices, which are intended to be offered at no cost to qualifying families through Florida’s Centers for Autism and Related Disabilities, known as CARD, and participating sheriff’s offices.
Duggan said the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office’s drone program could also assist in searches for missing people.
“JSO has a tremendous drone program that they’ve implemented here locally for not just crime fighting, but for exactly this kind of activity as well, helping find missing people,” Duggan said.
The program’s rollout remained underway as of the report. Duggan said devices were still being distributed to four CARD centers participating in a pilot program and expected more Florida families to have access later this quarter.
Families seeking information can contact their local CARD center. In Jacksonville, the local center is the University of Florida Center for Autism and Related Disabilities.
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