The intermediate sanction is one of the strategies that the judges use in court when handling criminal cases. When the offender is found guilty in the court's presence, the criminal act may not be severe, and the judge gives the probation sentence where the offender is imprisoned for a short period. On the other hand, the criminal act may be severe, and therefore the judge gives an incarceration sentence where the offender is jailed for an extended period. Therefore, the intermediate sanction is an alternate sentence used to supervise offenders that are neither in the restriction of the probation nor incarceration. This essay focuses on the purposes and the types of intermediate sanction.
Purposes of Intermediate Sanction
Intermediate sanctions increase control over the offenders who may re-offend while still under probation. There are still wrongdoers under the restriction of probation but still go to the extent of committing more crimes (Ruback, 2014). In this scenario, the judge considers intermediate sanction as the best option to control these offenders who may pose a more serious threat to the community
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Intermediate sanction reduces the issue of overcrowding in prisons. This is an advantage to the community since it reduces the offensive behavior that the offenders could commit while still together in prison. The overcrowding in prison may affect the conduct of the people in prison, and this may lead to the complexity of crimes in prisons (Haynes, Cares & Ruback, 2014). Also, the human health of some of the offenders may be affected due to overcrowding in prison. Therefore, an intermediate sanction is a strategy used to reduces overcrowding problems in prison.
Intermediate sanction aims at saving money and accumulate more income. Since the offenders are sentenced differently as compared to probation and incarceration, the cost used is less (Franklin, Dittmann & Henry, 2017). The could that could be used to cater to the offenders' expenses in prison are not used; hence, it saves on that cost. On the other hand, income is accumulated from the penalties using the intermediate sanction. The use of fines as a penalty by the judge to the offender is used to generate income.
Types of Intermediate Sanctions
Fines contributed by the offender to the court is one of the intermediate sanctions. When the offender has been considered guilty for his criminal act, the judge orders the offender to contribute a certain amount of money equivalent to the criminal act. This fine is collected to clear out the criminal act that the offender has committed. Fines are considered penalties for punishing the offender for the criminal activities he has committed (Bandyopadhyay & McCannon, 2014).
House arrest is also an intermediate sanction. The offender is monitored and ordered not to move out of their homes, or they are ordered to limit their movement while under probation (Bandyopadhyay & McCannon, 2014). The officer uses the electric technology to track the offender's movement and to monitor their daily actions in their homes.
The intermediate sanction uses community service as its strategy. In this type of the intermediate sanction, the offender is ordered to spend all of their time working for the community (Franklin, Dittmann & Henry, 2017). The community agency is urged by the court to give tasks to the offender that he or she will be doing as a daily chore. The offender is always expected to adhere to the community agency's rules without questioning them regarding the duty given. The officers pay attention to the offender's behavior. In case of a change of their behavior in a positive manner, the offender is released.
Restitution is obliged to the offender by the judge. The court orders the offender to contribute a specified amount of money. This goes to the crime complainant as compensation for the crime done (Ruback, 2014). Restitution is used to restore good behavior back in society.
In conclusion, the intermediate sanction is used as a strategy to punish the criminals. As a result, their good behavior can be restored back and also to provide justice to the complainant. Through the different types of intermediate sanctions discussed above, the court considers it appropriate to impose each per the crime committed.
References
Bandyopadhyay, S., & McCannon, B. C. (2014). The effect of the election of the prosecutors on the criminal trials. Public Choice , 161(1-2), 141-156.
Franklin, T. W., Dittmann, L., & Henry, T. K. (2017). Extralegal disparity in the application of intermediate sanctions: An analysis of US district courts. Crime & Delinquency , 63(7), 839-874
Gunnison, E., & Helfgott, J. B. (2013). Offender Reentry: Beyond Crime & Punishment. Boulder , CO: Lynne Rienner Publishers.
Haynes,S.H., Cares, A. C., & Ruback, R. B. ( 2014). Juvenile economic sanctions: An analysis of their imposition, payment, and effect on recidivism. Criminology & Public Policy , 13(1), 31-60.
Ruback, R. B. (2014). The benefits and costs of economic sanctions: Considering the victim, the offender, and society. Minn. L. Rev ., 99, 1799.
