Jail or prison is not always the answer. Sometimes, it just needs community service as the punishment. What is community service? For those who have zero or little knowledge about it and want to know more about it, check out the following information as it will uncover community service as the punishment, including examples.
The community service is described as unpaid, volunteer work in the community that a judge orders to the offender at sentencing. It is known as the noncustodial sentence. It can be given by the judge as punishment and rehabilitation.
Usually, community service is given to those with certain crimes. However, it is not always like that. This kind of punishment is usually ordered by the judge to state low-level property crimes, misdemeanors, or first time non-violent offenders. However, it can also be ordered by the judges in felony cases. Those with violent offenses have no option to get community service to minimize their sentence. A few cases that are given the community service sentence include property crimes, petty theft, shoplifting, DUI or driving under influence, and specific fraud cases.
Contrary to the popular beliefs, when the sentence of an individual results in non-custodial community service, it does not mean that the conviction is not as severe. It is worth noting that a community service sentence in a criminal case that is caused by a criminal conviction is a serious matter that should not be taken lightly by people. Another thing to keep in mind is that a community service sentence is not usually a custodial sentence. While it is true that people usually complete their community service sentence in non-custodial settings, it is still part of a criminal conviction and is clearly a thing that is serious.
What are the examples of the community service punishment? There are a number of examples of community service punishment. Some of the most common ones include helping out at non-profit organizations, helping government agencies, helping small local businesses, and so on. The types of community service ordered by the judges vary. Some of the judges prefer the community service that is related to the crime that the offenders have done. For instance, in a case of drunk driving or DUI, the type of community sentence that is asked might be to speak at a school about how bad and dangerous drunk driving is.
Aside from that, the type of community service that is ordered can also be related to the skills of the offender. While her request was denied, Martha Stewart once proposed volunteering for 1,000 hours of community service or 20 hours a week at a nonprofit offering financial advice and loans to low income women called the Women’s Venture Fund instead of facing 10-16 months in federal prison. She wanted to teach these women how to run a business. Her request was actually supported by the President of the Women’s Venture Fund. At the time, the President even sent a letter to the court regarding the advantages that could be offered by Stewart for the women in the program. Unfortunately, the request to do community service was rejected.
Some other cases with the community service as the punishment include:
- An American singer named Bobby Brown served 240 hours of community service for a drunk driving conviction.
- An American actress named Winona Ryder received 480 hours of community service for a shoplifting conviction in 2001.
- An American author, Jenna Bush had to do 36 hours of community service for her underage drinking case. Meanwhile, her sister Barbara had to do 8 hours of community service.
- An investment banker named James McDermott was sentenced to 8 months in prison and 300 hours of community service in 2000 for his insider trading case.
- The former CEO of Sotheby, Diana Brooks, was ordered by the court to do 6 months of home confinement and 1,000 hours of community service in 2002 as the punishment for her taking a role in a price fixing scheme.
As mentioned above, specific fraud cases can also be sentenced with community service. One of the most popular examples is Joey Chen. The man pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and honest services wire fraud. When the plea hearing took place, he admitted that he took his role in a college admissions scandal. He said he paid Rick Singer $75,000 to bribe a college test administrator so that someone could allow the answers of his son secretly. His plea agreement, subject to court approval, such as a sentence of 9 weeks in prison, 1 year of supervised release, 100 hours of community service, and $75,000 fine.
In the federal system, the judge has the right to decide which type of the community service sentence is given to the offenders. In Chen’s case, he agreed to serve 100 hours of community service when he goes to supervised release. In his case, 100 hours of community service is not a lot or too much. It is fine. It is actually lesser compared to the other ones who were also involved in the college admissions scandal. Unlike Chen, the other ones were ordered to do community service of 300, 500, and even 900 hours.
In Chen’s case, another high profile defendant was sentenced with 14 days in prison, 250 hours of community service, 1 year of supervised release, and a fine of $30,000. Aside from that, there is also another one that was sentenced with 2 months in prison, a fine of $250,000, 3 years of supervised release of probation, and 900 hours of community service.
Community service is just like the other punishments. If one fails to complete the community service order, they can get arrested for contempt of court or failure to comply with a court order. While some people use community service to avoid prison or to get reduced time in custody, it is still important and has to be taken seriously.
A bookworm and researcher especially related to law and citizenship education. I spend time every day in front of the internet and the campus library.
