Alternatives to Prison: Hungarian Law and Practice on Non-custodial Sentences

As part of an international comparative research funded by the European Union, the Hungarian Helsinki Committee conducted a study on the Hungarian legal framework and the practical application of alternative sanctions (penalties and measures), which may be imposed or applied instead of custodial sanctions. Institutions of early release, such as release on parole and reintegration custody were also analysed.

Our study, Alternatives to Prison: Hungarian Law and Practice on Non-custodial Sentences is available here.

After reviewing alternative sanctions and legal institutions related to early release, the study discusses their practical application based on the results of empirical research. Our empirical research methods were the following:

• analysis of public data,
• interviews with attorneys, probation officers, penitentiary probation officers, judges, former detainees,
• poll among attorneys by means of anonymous questionnaires.