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for first time offenders because it gives a “grace period” and a chance to work off one mistake from a record. “I would look more closely whether (the offender) could benefit,” he said, pointing out that perpetrators of certain classes of crime would not be eligible. Not for murderers is alternative sentencing, he said. It should be limited to lower grade offenses where there would be minimal danger to the public of having the person out on the streets and a minimal chance of repetition of the crime. The best bet is a person with no prior record.
Former Commonwealth’s Attorney Douglas Baumgardner says he most often recommended community service in property related misdemeanors and for young first-time offenders. Some youthful offenders face mitigating circumstances where a jail record would hurt their chances for ■ achieving future ambitions, Baumgardner pointed out. In these cases, the court would consider the chance for rehabilitation greatest with the less severe sentence.
Baumgardner has seen no studies on the program’s success at rehabilitation. However, he said community service was being imposed on increasing numbers of local offenders during the past year or two partly due to lack of jail space. Pearson Explains Program
The state’s Community Diversion Incentive (CDI) program was designed in part to solve the problem of over-crowing, admits district CDI coordinator Jeff Pearson from the Culpeper office. He’s been working fulltime since September when the district was allocated its share of state CDI finding.
During 1983 there were 125 people assigned to perform community service in the district, Pearson said.
84.3%