Chapter 8
Residential Community
Supervision Programs
Introduction
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Intermediate Sanctions are sentencing options
between prison and probation that provide
punishment that fits the circumstances of the
crime and the offender.
Widening the net occurs when prosecutors or
judges choose offenders for intermediate
sanctions who should have received probation.
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Residential Community
Corrections Facilities
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RCCFs are a popular intermediate sanction
because they:
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Provide more intensive supervision than probation and
parole
Allow offenders to remain in the community where
they have access to more treatment services than
prison
Cost less than jail or prison
Allow offenders to contribute to their families as well
as pay victims back
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Residential Community
Corrections Facilities, Con’t.

While there is no “average” residential facility, they
do share these features:
 Residents live in the facility (not at home).
 Residents can leave the facility for work at a
verified job.
 Residents must be preapproved to leave for any
other reason, with appropriate limits.
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Halfway Houses

Halfway houses, also known as Community
Corrections Centers, are staffed 24 hours a
day, 7 days a week, and provide residential
services for offenders who are either:
 “Halfway-in”
or
 “Halfway-out”
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Halfway Houses, Con’t.
Halfway houses date back to the early 1800s in
England and Ireland, and originated in the U.S.
in 1816.
 After only partial previous success, halfway
houses received government assistance for the
first time in the 1960s.
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Halfway Houses, Con’t.

Levels System: A Form of Behavior Modification
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Increased freedom must be earned, based on:
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good behavior
the amount of time in the program
Workers at a halfway house are either:
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Custody-oriented
or
Responsible for treatment and rehabilitation
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Evaluation of RCCFs
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Evaluations of RCCFs typically examine program success or failure rates
by comparing recidivism of residents with a matched sample of
probationers or parolees.
Evaluations conclude:
 Treatment participation by residents is critical to success.
 Clients that did not use drugs, had skill sets and community ties were
more successful.
 Clients who were younger, used drugs and alcohol and with more
extensive criminal histories were more likely to fail.
 RCCF clients are more successful than high risk parolees, but just the
opposite with low risk offenders.
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Shock Incarceration

Shock incarceration refers to a brief period of
imprisonment that precedes a term of supervised
probation and is variously referred to as:
 Shock probation
 Shock parole
 Intermittent incarceration
 Split sentence
 Boot camp
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Correctional Boot Camps
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After beginning in Georgia in 1983, Boot camps were
the most common form of shock incarceration from
1983-late 1990s.
Eligible offenders generally:
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Are first-time felony offenders
Have been convicted of a nonviolent offense
Fall within a certain age group
Meet certain physical requirements
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Types of Boot Camps
The two main types of boot camp programs
are:
 Prison Boot Camps
 Probation/Jail Boot Camps
 Programs are typically 90-180 days before
graduation to probation or parole supervision
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Criticisms
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Criticisms of boot camps are:
 They widen the net
 The confrontational style may have potentially negative
consequences
 Problems with staff retention
Evaluations of boot camp effectiveness examine:
 Attitude or behavioral change
 Decrease in institutional crowding
 Reduction in budget costs
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Other Types of Residential
Community Corrections Facilities
 Restitution
Centers
 Therapeutic Communities
 Work and Study Release
 Women Offenders Living with Children
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Supervising Offenders Who Are
Mentally Ill
 Responses
to offenders with mental
illnesses in the community include:
 Mental health courts
 Specialized caseloads
 Outpatient treatment
 Residential treatment
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Drug and Alcohol Offenders
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According to Steiner (2004), supervision obstacles
include:
Identifying quality drug treatment programs with
trained staff
Being able to refer clients to a community-based
program (due to space availability)
Limited ability to keep offenders in treatment
Relapse prevention
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Therapeutic Communities (TCs)
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TCs focus on the long-term treatment of
alcoholism and drug addiction and abstinence
from substances for criminal offenders.
TCs are generally better suited for long-term
poly-drug addictions.
Drug courts are geared toward moderate forms
of addiction.
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RCCFs for Women Offenders
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Most women are nonviolent property or drug
offenders, and do not pose a threat to the community.
Therefore, most women felons do not require prison
sentences and would be ideal candidates for
community placement.
Many programs exist for women to live in with their
children while serving sanction.
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Work Release
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Work release could be considered both a type
of institutional corrections and a community
corrections program.
The traditional use of work release is much
more restrictive than the halfway house
environment because offenders are not allowed
to leave the facility for any other reason except
work and school.
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Restitution Centers

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Restitution centers are a type of residential
community correctional facility specifically
targeted for work-capable offenders who owe
victim restitution or community service.
A restitution center is a halfway house that is
less restrictive than a work release center in that
it permits residents to visit family, attend
church, and go to the store or treatment.
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