NCJ Number
72999
Date Published
1980
Length
13 pages
Annotation
The Alternative Community Service Program of Multnomah County, Oreg., provides offenders with the option of fulfilling the conditions of their sentences at one of several community projects or at regular agencies.
Abstract
Working within the context of community service restitution sentencing, the program offers alternatives to incarceration or the imposition of a fine. Approximately 165 public service nonprofit agencies work with the program on a regular basis, including the Washington Park Zoo, the Portland Recycling Team, and Goodwill Industries. Program objectives promote noncoerciveness; nonexpansionism (in costs or staff enlargement): reconciliation between victim, offender, and the community; respect for individuals' need for self-direction and growth; positive, clear, achievable goals; and contractual situations. Since 1972, 14,000 people have been referred to the program, with 82 percent completing their assignments successfully. One large community project, Artquake, located in downtown Portland to draw people downtown and inspire interest in the arts, started to take on program volunteers in 1977 for its 4-day festival with the result that the festival was an enormous success for 1977, 1978, and 1979. Increased visibility of the Alternative Community Service Program led to enhanced support for the concept of community sentencing. Program participants found the experience to be enriching and productive in terms of teamwork, comradery, and a sense of accomplishment. The merging of a criminal justice program with a widely attended cultural event was achieved in a cost effective, cooperative, and productive manner. The regular agency base was increased through exposure to the program at the festival and other large-scale community service projects became more interested in working with the program. Five footnotes are provided.