Alternatives to Incarceration

Alternatives to incarceration are ways of holding people accountable for a crime without sending them to jail or prison. They include probation, community service, treatment programs, specialized courts such as drug courts, and diversion programs that can end a case before conviction. Judges, prosecutors, probation agencies, and local governments run them.

People usually ask who qualifies, how these programs compare with jail in cost and results, what happens if someone fails to complete one, and how supporters and critics weigh public safety against rehabilitation.