The study was conducted in two phases. The first phase, completed in August 1993, assessed pretrial alternatives to incarceration by comparing defendants in the community on conditional release with a group of defendants who had no conditions as part of their release status. The second phase compared offenders sentenced to alternatives to incarceration with offenders sentenced to incarceration and those receiving sentences that combined incarceration and community programming. In most instances, offenders sentenced to community programs posed less risk to public safety than offenders who were released after incarceration. In addition, offenders typically the source of greatest concern to the public and to policymakers, those convicted of drug offenses or violent crimes, did better in the first year than other types of offenders under community supervision. Policy and programming implications of the study findings are discussed. 14 footnotes and 2 tables