The unique structural reorganization and programmatic initiatives of Delaware's correctional system are described particularly in reference to prison overcrowding.
The main feature of the Delaware system is its unified approach to corrections; there are no county or city jails in Delaware. All of the correctional facilities in the three counties are run by the State Department of Correction (DOC) and all offender supervision in the community is under its jurisdiction. In dealing with the increasing trend in correctional crowding, Delaware focused on a solution based on the accountability level concept which led to fundamental changes in the system of sentencing. A 5-level continuum of punishment was adopted by statutes in 1987 ranging from the very restrictive punishment of jail to the less restrictive sanction of probation with intermediate sanctions of intensive probation, residential drug treatment, electronic house arrest monitoring units, and halfway houses. Since 1987, judges have complied with this voluntary standards system with 80 percent of the sentences within these guidelines and the remaining properly explained. The Sentencing Accountability Commission oversees the system and makes appropriate modifications if warranted. 2 charts and 6 footnotes