JAIL ALTERNATIVES/HOME INCARCERATION

Home Incarceration

The threat of jail time is one of the most frightening parts of getting a DUI/DWI charge.  Many states now allow home incarceration as an alternative to serving time in jail.  This usually means that you will be fitted with a monitoring device (often around the ankle) and not allowed to leave the home except in certain limited circumstances.

This option is sometimes available for nearly all DWI charges.  Some states may limit its use to just lower level DWI charges.  Although the prospect of staying at home instead of going to jail may seem easy, not being allowed to leave the house can get tedious.

There is also a cost consideration.  Home incarceration can range from a few hundred to several thousand dollars.  And (in longer sentences) this may stop you from holding certain types of jobs as the electronics could interfere with equipment or become snagged on machinery.

Part Time Incarceration

Believe it or not, some jails shut down at night and on weekends.  Smaller towns may close their jail and holding facilities at night and weekends to give their police the time off.  This lets people charged with lower level offenses (and yes many DWI offenders) do their sentence on a part time basis.

This could be important because it may be a way to keep your job by doing time on weekends or off days instead of a long stretch that could leave you unemployed.  In some places this is known as a work furlough or work release. It is seem most often with city jails that may close at the same time – often 4:30 or 5:00 – when the local courts shut down.