1. (1) The judiciary shall implement alternative programs that place, control, supervise, and treat selected defendants in lieu of a sentence of incarceration.
2. (2) Defendants may be considered for sentencing to alternative programs if they have not been convicted of a non-probationable class A felony.
3. (3) A defendant may be sentenced by a district, family, or circuit court judge to alternative programs.
4. (4) As used in this section, "alternative programs" means programs that are created and funded by legislative appropriation or federal grant naming the judiciary or one of its operating agencies as the expending agency and that are intended to provide an alternative to incarceration. Alternative programs may include:
5. (a) House arrest, or curfew using electronic monitoring and surveillance, or both;
6. (b) Drug court programs for defendants with assessed alcohol or drug abuse problems, or both;
7. (c) Therapeutic residential and nonresidential programs, including secure drug treatment facilities; and
8. (d) Similar programs created and designated as alternative programs by the legislature or the administrative director of the courts for qualified defendants who do not pose significant risks to the community.

[L Sp 1995, c 25, §4; am L Sp 2009, c 4, §2; am L 2016, c 231, §19]

Cross References

Similar provisions, see §§353-10.5 and 353-63.5.

COMMENTARY ON §706-605.1

Act 25, Special Session Laws 1995, added this section, which requires the judiciary to implement alternative programs that place, control, supervise, and treat selected defendants in lieu of an incarceration sentence. The legislature addressed the problem of prison overcrowding by, inter alia, providing for the implementation of alternatives to incarceration that do not undermine public safety. House Standing Committee Report No. 23-S, Senate Standing Committee Report No. 2-S (1995 Special Session). See also Conference Committee Report No. 122, Senate Bill No. 82 (vetoed).

Act 4, Special Session Laws 2009, amended this section, authorizing the placement of certain drug offenders in secure drug treatment facilities, to promote the rehabilitation of convicted drug offenders through alternatives to incarceration. The legislature found that providing convicted drug offenders with drug rehabilitation programs in a secure drug treatment facility would reduce the offenders' rate of recidivism upon release and help the offenders develop an important and meaningful role in society. Senate Standing Committee Report No. 1285, Conference Committee Report No. 25.

Act 231, Session Laws 2016, amended this section to implement recommendations made by the Penal Code Review Committee convened pursuant to House Concurrent Resolution No. 155, S.D. 1 (2015).

Law Journals and Reviews

Report on the Success of the Maui/Molokai Adult Drug Court: Proven Successful, the New Paradigm for our Criminal Justice System? 34 UH L. Rev. 423 (2012).