NCJ Number
116154
Editor(s)
H Albrecht,
W Schadler
Date Published
1986
Length
259 pages
Annotation
Eleven papers from a European conference on the community service order review trends in the use of the order in Europe in general and in specific countries.
Abstract
The opening paper considers the use of the community service order (performance of work in the community for the benefit of the public) in Western European countries, with attention to the historical development of the order, its use as an alternative to the short prison sentence and as a sanction for fine default, and the components of a community service order. Papers on the development and use of the community service order in particular countries focus on England and Wales, the Netherlands, France, Denmark, Poland, Portugal, Italy, and West Germany. A paper presenting concluding remarks by the editors notes that with the exception of Great Britain, the concept of community service in Western European countries is guided by other sanctions, indicating that community service still does not have an independent status as a sentence. A judge in the Netherlands, for example, can impose 240 hours of community service in place of 6 months imprisonment, or a person convicted of a crime in the Federal Republic of Germany can be sentenced to 180 hours of community service instead of a fine of 30 per-diem rates. As community service has gained a growing practical importance in European countries (particularly in Denmark, West Germany, France, and the Netherlands), however, it should increasingly acquire a status of its own through constant use and a recognition of its value as an original sanction. Appended legislative materials, chapter notes, 144-item bibliography. For individual papers, see NCJ-116155-65.