Intermediate Sanctions

Abstract

Intermediate sanctions are a form of criminal punishment that lie between total confinement and probation. They are less restrictive than total confinement in prisons and jails, but more concentrated and centered than probation. The primary forms of intermediate sanctions include boot camps, halfway houses, intensive supervision programs (ISP), home confinement, electronic monitoring, and monetary penalties (fines and restitution). Each of these sanctions are designed to fulfill a specific purpose in penalizing an offender. Intermediate sanctions are primarily used for certain populations of offenders—offenders whose risks and needs assessments demonstrate that they will benefit from punishment in a community setting. The use of intermediate sanctions as a form of punishment has a long history. Galileo, for example, was famously punished with home confinement in the early 1600s. It was not until the 1980s and 1990s, however, that intermediate sanctions became broadly used as a form of punishment. The intermediate sanction system today is diverse and complex, making it difficult to determine the number of offenders involved or even the number and type of intermediate sanctions that exist in different jurisdictions. Despite the lack of consistent information, it appears that every state now incorporates intermediate sanctions into its collection of possible punishments and that they are a consistent part of correctional practice used in a majority of criminal cases. Intermediate sanctions are often used in combination with probation. They have often become “add on” sentences used to rectify a specific aspect of the criminal behavior being punished.