NCJ Number
140294
Date Published
1990
Length
47 pages
Annotation
The Virginia State Crime Commission visited the Shock Probation Facility at the Thames Correctional Center in Rembert, South Carolina, heard testimony from members of the law enforcement community, and reviewed the operations and effectiveness of similar programs in eight other States to determine whether or not a shock incarceration program should be instituted in Virginia.
Abstract
The Commission recommended the implementation of a pilot program in Virginia, to be modeled after the South Carolina program. The Virginia program would be housed in the facility currently used for the Youthful Offender Program. This report estimates that the cost per bed would approximate that spent on each participant in the Youthful Offender Program; the shorter period of stay for boot camp participants would therefore realize substantial savings. Participants in the program would be non-violent felony offenders without prior incarceration, aged between 18 and 24, and physically and mentally healthy. Participation would be voluntary; inmates who successfully completed the program would have their prison terms suspended. The 90-day program would feature military drill, ceremony, and physical wellness training; physical labor; drug and alcohol education; adult basic education; general equivalency diploma; and vocational assessment. 4 appendixes