Could a judge, in theory, sentence a convict to, say, one million hours of community service and require him/her to perform at least 25 hours a week, which would, practically speaking, amount to a life sentence of community service?
Also, what happens if a convict slacks off while on the job?
Michael R. Milken, one of the associates of Martha Stewart, was sentenced to 5,400 hours of community service. In news articles it is cited as one of the longest sentences in the U.S.
Lindsay Lohan was threatened with jail time when the judge felt that she wasn’t putting enough effort into her community service. You have to wonder if Lindsay would have just been thrown into the slammer at that point if she hadn’t been a celebrity.
Around here people can be sentenced to community service for ordinance violations. In Wisconsin ordinance violations are not crimes (and state statutes clearly spell that out). I wonder if anyone has ever appealed a community service sentence for an ordinance violation conviction on the grounds that it violates the 13th Amendment:
*Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.
Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation*
I got the idea that the California prison/jail systems are so overcrowded that unless you’re Charles Manson they don’t have room for you.
But realistically the threat of jail or prison is the only thing keeping people from blowing off community service. I volunteer at a food bank. I’m an out of shape, 47 year old with a desk job, I get winded climbing stairs. I get ten times more product stacked/shelved/sorted than four guys in their 20s who are there doing their community service. The staff doesn’t ride them. In fact most people, including me, are at least a little afraid of them. The only thing the managers are reporting is that they showed up, stayed for nine hours and didn’t appear to be drunk or stoned. The only reason these guys showed up was that their PO could show up at any time and if they weren’t there, he would go straight to their home or favored hangout to take them in to jail. They don’t even seem to have enough sense to understand that if they didn’t show up, the food bank would report that, and they’d end up in the same place.
The whole thing seems screwed up. The food bank is participating in the program because they purportedly are helping rehabilitate the offenders by giving them some work experience. But in reality, no one in their right minds would hire these guys based on this experience.
That’s a good question. Do community service convicts get regular performance appraisals? “In order to keep your community service position of Trash-Picker-Upper on City Road, you must pick up at least 100 pieces of trash an hour. If you do not meet this metric, you will go to jail.” If they are doing their community service at a local nonprofit (e.g. food bank, animal shelter, orphanage, whatnot) rather than directly under a government department, can they be “fired” by the local management? If so, does that firing need to be reviewed by the probation department and/or a judge to determine whether or not the firing was for good cause (and not for an unlawful employment discrimination reason like refusing to sleep with a manager or following a religion that the manager disapproves of) or does the person go straight to jail for a violation?
I’m sure the exact mechanics differ from state to state, but convicts on probation or parole have to report to someone, a probation or parole officer, and if they screw up the community service that officer can refer them to a judge for not complying with the terms of probation/parole. So yes, it is possible to get in trouble for not picking up enough trash, though I don’t know how lazy you’d have to be to get in trouble–probably depends on the supervisor, the officer, and the judge.
We have people performing community service at one of the places I volunteer. If they don’t show up, or goof off, or whatever, then we don’t sign off on their paperwork. The hours don’t count.
The sky’s the limit. (Ever been married?)