U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government, Department of Justice.

NCJRS Virtual Library

The Virtual Library houses over 235,000 criminal justice resources, including all known OJP works.
Click here to search the NCJRS Virtual Library

North Carolina Community and Intermediate Sanctions Handbook for Court Officials and Community Corrections Agencies

NCJ Number
155211
Author(s)
S C Pearce; J H Madler
Date Published
1994
Length
70 pages
Annotation
The Structured Sentencing Act adopted by the North Carolina General Assembly establishes new policies for sentencing misdemeanor and felony offenders in North Carolina.
Abstract
The new law prioritizes jail and prison resources for violent and career offenders and channels nonviolent, noncareer offenders into community-based sanctions. Under structured sentencing, judges have an array of community and intermediate punishment options to select from when sentencing offenders. Community and intermediate sanction resources are limited, however, and courts and community corrections agencies must use these resources effectively. This may be accomplished by prioritizing specific community and intermediate sanctions for eligible offenders. Advisory policies are outlined for matching offenders who receive a suspended sentence to community-based sanctions. Focusing on three objectives (punishment, risk control, and reparation), these policies identify offenders best suited for certain community and intermediate sanctions. Steps involved in matching offenders to community and intermediate sanctions are detailed, a sample sanction decision chart is included, and recommendations are offered for further prioritizing the use of limited resources. An appendix contains additional information on community corrections resources in North Carolina. Charts