Alternative Sentencing
Alternative sentencing means crafting appropriate punishments for criminal convictions other than traditional prison terms, probation and parole. Rising prison populations and their associated costs have led criminal justice administrators to reconsider jail sentences and find options that are less expensive and better designed to foster rehabilitation and prevent recidivism. Options range from court diversion programs to privately paid jail facilities.
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Court Diversion
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Court diversion programs avoid sentencing by removing the case from the court system. Court diversion is available in some jurisdictions, usually for youthful or first-time offenders. Access may be restricted to matters of property or small-quantity drug crimes. Usually the offender must complete community-oriented tasks within a certain time period, or the matter is brought back into the court system for criminal charges. These tasks might include community service, a letter of apology, attending drug or alcohol screening, or counseling groups.
Deferred Sentences
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In many jurisdictions a judge may defer entering sentence on a conviction for some period of time. If that period of time elapses and the defendant has not been charged with additional crimes or drug violations, then no sentence is imposed. Depending on the jurisdiction, the underlying charge may be removed from the offender's record as well. States vary in the requirements imposed on defendants during the deferral period. Some simply are instructed not to commit further crimes, while others are under intense probation supervision or drug testing requirements.
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Community Restorative Justice
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Restorative justice requires offenders to meet with a panel of their peers or victims of crimes similar to the ones they committed. This includes family members of the person who was killed by drunk drivers or whose children died of drug overdoses. Restorative justice panels may function as a court diversion program or as a condition of probation or other supervised release. The panels are intended to help the offender learn more about the impact of his actions and provide an opportunity for him to give back to the community.
Home Detention
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Home detention is sometimes ordered by judges in lieu of incarceration, particularly if this alternative allows the offender to continue working in order to pay damages or fines in a property or white-collar crime. Home detention usually requires the defendant to allow random visits and calls from supervising criminal justice personnel.
Monitoring
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Technology advancements have made it increasingly easy for criminal justice officials to monitor an offender's location. Computerized locational devices can be strapped to a person's wrist or ankle and indicate the individual's whereabouts much in the same way that a GPS navigation system works in a car. Electronic monitoring may be required in lieu of, or in addition to, any other requirement of supervised release.
Private Jails
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Many state criminal justice systems contract with private, for-profit jail companies to house state-convicted prisoners. The largest contractor is the Corrections Corporation of America. Other include Community Education Centers and the Cornell Companies. Convicts with economic resources may also choose, with court approval, to be housed in private jails that are open only to paying customers. Many of these facilities include drug treatment, mental health counseling and other services not available in public or publicly-contracted corrections facilities.
Expert Insight
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The U.S. Sentencing Commission, in a 2009 report on alternative sentencing, stated that "[e]ffective alternative sanctions are important options for federal, state and local criminal justice systems." The Sentencing Commission says that alternative sentences can be lest costly than incarceration and provide offenders with greater opportunities for drug treatment, education and life-skills training.
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- Photo Credit Cindy Hill
