An evaluation of one state's (Arizona) intensive supervision program. Focuses on the extent to which intensive supervision was effective in controlling criminal behavior & whether intensive supervision was a cost-saving alternative to incarceration. Charts & tables.

Alternatives to prison and incarceration are explored in this volume. The contributors discuss intensive probation supervision, electronic monitoring, home confinement, shock incarceration, day reporting centres, the use of fines, split sentencing and the controversial issues surrounding alternative punishments. In conclusion, they look at the future of intermediate sanctions considering the many questions posed by criminal justice professionals and students.

This volume addresses major issues and research in corrections and sentencing with the goal of using previous research and findings as a platform for recommendations about future research, evaluation, and policy. The last several decades witnessed major policy changes in sentencing and corrections in the United States, as well as considerable research to identify the most effective strategies for addressing criminal behavior. These efforts included changes in sentencing that eliminated parole and imposed draconian sentences for violent and drug crimes. The federal government, followed by most states, implemented sentencing guidelines that greatly reduced the discretion of the courts to impose sentences. The results were a multifold increase in the numbers of individuals in jails and prisons and on community supervision—increases that have only recently crested. There were also efforts to engage prosecutors and the courts in diversion and oversight, including the development of prosecutorial diversion programs, as well as a variety of specialty courts. Penal reform has included efforts to understand the transitions from prison to the community, including federal-led efforts focused on reentry programming. Community corrections reforms have ranged from increased surveillance through drug testing, electronic monitoring, and in some cases, judicial oversight, to rehabilitative efforts driven by risk and needs assessment. More recently, the focus has included pretrial reform to reduce the number of people held in jail pending trial, efforts that have brought attention to the use of bail and its disproportionate impact on people of color and the poor. This collection of chapters from leading researchers addresses a wide array of the latest research in the field. A unique approach featuring responses to the original essays by active researchers spurs discussion and provides a foundation for developing directions for future research and policymaking.

Annotation This book is devoted completely to intermediate sanctions systems and their individual programs.