Dr. Sami Hamdan AL-Rawashdeh
Professor of Criminal Law
College of Law, University of Qatar

Abstract:

The subject of this study focuses on a form of alternative punishment in contemporary criminal legislation, specifically the punishment of community service, as it has become an alternative to short-term freedom-depriving punishment. The vast majority of criminal legislation, including the English, Jordanian and Qatari Penal Codes, have adopted this form of punishment. This study aims to shed light on the punishment of community service by defining it, clarifying its characteristics and advantages, its nature and types, in addition to its philosophy and historical roots. This study also aims to clarify and analyze the legal provisions governing this punishment in the examined comparative legislation. Whereas, the Jordanian and the Qatari law have only recently adopted the legislation, the English law had adopted this approach much earlier.
The punishment of community service represents a new development in the theory of punishment, its purposes and goals. Modern penal legislation hastened to adopt it in light of the positives and advantages that this punishment achieves, especially in rehabilitating the convict, and avoiding short-term freedom-depriving punishment. Community service is a form of punishment in modern criminal policies that aims to reform and discipline the offender and correct his behavior. It is also considered an effective way to reduce the problem of overcrowding in punitive institutions, and through which to reduce associated costly expenses that are exhausting the public treasury, in addition to the economic advantages it achieves that constitute a savings for the state. Therefore, this punishment is considered one of the most important alternatives to short-term freedom-depriving punishments.

Keywords: community service punishment, alternative punishments, short-term freedom-depriving punishment, Jordanian Law, Qatari Law, English Law.

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