Traditionally, the sentencing judge imposed a sentence without concerning himself with the details of its execution. However, the modern judge who takes an interest in the closed prison situation faced by convicted offenders will find outmoded institutions which provide poor food, no leisure activities, few work opportunities, and little chance to indemnify victims. The sentencing judge can exercise disciplinary power on the prisoner only by allowing time off for good behavior. Even this limited power is dependent on the cooperation of wardens, who tend to feel defensive. The sentencing judge alone may give special permission for furloughs which enable convicts to visit their families or seek jobs, reduce sentences, and allow convicts to enter work release programs or grant them conditional release. Services to the large number of parolees and probationers (around 400 in Lille) released each year are limited by the small number of sentencing judges and of educators supervising the cases. Little money is available to meet probationers' and parolees' needs. Many of the centers for ex-prisoners only serve as another form of imprisonment. It is virtually impossible to ascertain the results of the judges' efforts because each case is different, and it is difficult to assess the usefulness of particular treatment modes in advance.