As the UK and many other western societies face up to the consequences of a rapidly increasing prison population, so the search for alternative approaches to punishment and dealing with offenders has become an increasingly urgent priority for government policy and society as a whole. This book reports the results of the research programme commissioned by the Coulsfield Inquiry into Alternatives to Prison, which was funded by the Esmée Fairbairn 'Rethinking Crime and Punishment' initiative. It is written by leading authorities in the field, and provides a comprehensive, authoritative and wide-ranging review of the range of issues associated with the use of noncustodial sanctions, examining experiences in Scotland and Northern Ireland as well as England and Wales.

Stephen Stanley and Mary Baginsky examine and evaluate the range of non-custodial sentences available to the courts, discussing their effectiveness, and exploring the often complex issues they raise. Drawing on a wide range research literature, this is both a clear and informative synthesis of thinking on a pressing problem and an important contribution to the wider debate about how society should deal with crime and criminals.

In 2003, there were almost seven million criminals in the United States. But only about two million of them were behind bars. In Alternatives to Prison, you'll learn why those other five million people are out on parole or probation. You'll also learn about: rehabilitation, community service, boot camps, day reporting, house arrest, and what the future may hold for other alternatives to prison.

The detrimental effects of imprisonment have been documented and accepted in most western countries. As a result, alternatives to incarceration have been sought in the effort to reform the penal system. Although during the last thirty years several Nordic official committees have recommended a reduction in the use of jail sentences and an increase in other forms of punishment (i.e. fines and probation) in the hope of decreasing crime and rehabilitating criminals, incarceration rates have been going up in Sweden, Denmark, and Norway. Still, the interest in alternatives to imprisonment continues to grow, but few studies have actually been published that examine their effectiveness.

On any given day in America, more than 1.5 million people are locked up in state prisons and local jails, at costs that approach $20,000 per inmate each year. Crime and incarceration generate heated, but often contradictory, political debate; voters consider prisons the only real sanction for crime, but adamantly resist new taxes to pay for them. Sensible Justice explores creative solutions some states and cities nationwide have devised to tackle the prison problem.

Boldly and eloquently contributing to the argument against the prison system in the United States, these provocative essays offer an ideological and practical framework for empowering prisoners instead of incarcerating them. Experts and activists who have worked within and against the prison system join forces here to call attention to the debilitating effects of a punishment-driven society and offer clear-eyed alternatives that emphasize working directly with prisoners and their communities. Edited by Stephen John Hartnett, the volume offers rhetorical and political analyses of police culture, the so-called drug war, media coverage of crime stories, and the public-school-to-prison pipeline. The collection also includes case studies of successful prison arts and education programs in Michigan, California, Missouri, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania that provide creative and intellectual resources typically denied to citizens living behind bars. Writings and artwork created by prisoners in such programs richly enhance the volume. Contributors are Buzz Alexander, Rose Braz, Travis L. Dixon, Garrett Albert Duncan, Stephen John Hartnett, Julilly Kohler-Hausmann, Daniel Mark Larson, Erica R. Meiners, Janie Paul, Lori Pompa, Jonathan Shailor, Robin Sohnen, and Myesha Williams.