The sample of 505 cases consisted of every fifth case processed by the Harris County Criminal Courts at Law for Class A or B charges other than drunk driving during January 1984 and subsequently convicted. Data consisted of demographic information, criminal history, bail status, attorney status, type of disposition, days in detention, filing date, and date of law violation and conviction, gathered from the county's computerized justice information system. During the 36-month study period the defendants were monitored by both the local system and the National Crime Information Center. Findings indicated that probation was the best sanction, with the lowest recidivism rate according to chi-square analysis. Use of the recently developed technique of survival time analysis also showed that probationers had a significantly higher probability of not recidivating than jailed offenders during the study period. Findings support advocates of probation services and other alternatives to incarceration. Figures, tables, and 17 references. (Author abstract modified)