Justifications for the Probation Sanction Among Residents of Virginia--Cool or Uncool?

A telephone survey of 840 registered voters from Virginia seeks to discover 1) citizen support for probation ; 2) how citizens justify use of probation over other sanctions; and 3) whether the justification and sentencing recommendations are consistent across crimes. Results suggest that respondents tend to see probation as a rehabilitative tool rather than as punishment or a deterrent strategy.