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Banishment a popular (but uneven?) special punishment in Georgia

By Douglas A. Berman

As detailed in this effective local article, headlined "More than 500 people have been banished from Houston County," one Georgia county makes banishment a (semi)regular punishment for certain offenders.  Here are the particulars: More than 500 people have been banished in Houston County since 1998 when the District Attorney?s Office started tracking this sentencing option.  Still, that?s about one out of every 60 cases, comparing the 500 banishments to more than 30,000 cases for the same time frame, said Houston County District Attorney Kelly Burke.... Keeping a person out of the county where the crime was committed during the probationary period may actually help the offender, Burke said.  For example, banishment disrupts the network of a drug abuser or dealer, breaking the cycles of addiction and the criminal activity of buying and selling, Burke said...continue to full post

Full post as published by Sentencing Law and Policy on May 03, 2009 (boomark / email).