Make the punishment A man is caught stealing books from a bookshop. The judge asks why he did it and the thief says he loves books. What is the man's punishment? A prison sentence? A big fine ? No. The man is sent to read stories and books to hospital patients. He enjoys the job and continues to do it for many years! Welcome to alternative sentencing programmes Instead of traditional punishments criminals get the punishments that fit their crimes. __ What other examples of alternative sentencing are there?Two boys were caught writing graffiti on a wall. The normal punishment for this is a fine. but in this case the boys were told to do community service. They cleaned three weeks __ __ What about more serious crimes? Is alternative sentencing possible for crimes like theft or credit card fraud? It depends on many things. Who are the criminals? Are they young? Is this their first crime? Can they change their way of life? One recent story suggests it is possible. A shoplifter was caught shoplifting three times in one year in a small town in the United States . What was her punishment? She was sent to speak to shop owners. She gave advice on how to stop shoplifters. In one month she spoke to the owners of forty shops, and told them all about the techniques that shoplifters use. It was a great service to the community because after that, shoplifting almost disappeared from the town. A thief stole seventeen cans of paint. Instead of going to prison, he was told to spend several weeks painting local schools, a library, and other public buildings. He enjoyed the work, and now it's his job.