NCJ Number
162387
Date Published
1995
Length
13 pages
Annotation
This report presents results from the first 11 months of Sweden's test of intensive supervision with electronic monitoring as an alternative to short-term imprisonment for offenders in six probation districts.
Abstract
The data cover the period from August 1994 through July 1995. The degree of intensity of supervision was adapted to the circumstances of individual offenders. For a normal case, home visits were made at least twice a week, sometimes during the evenings and weekends. Contact was also maintained through telephone calls. Blood, urine, and breathalyser samples could also be taken to check that the offender was abstaining from alcohol and other drugs. Some offenders were required to visit the probation office regularly. During the period studied, 637 offenders became eligible to take part in the test. Most were males; their median age was 33. The average sentence length was 36 days. Sixty-nine percent of the eligible offenders applied for intensive supervision; 90 percent were accepted, 8 percent were rejected, and the others withdrew their applications or died. Of the 396 offenders accepted, 311 had satisfactorily completed the period under intensive supervision by July 31, 1995, 23 had their supervision terminated due to misconduct, and 62 were still under supervision or about to start. Findings indicated that the test was working well, and the government has proposed extending the test to the entire country and raising the upper limit of imprisonment from 2 to 3 months