Welcome to ATI Coalition
Alternative to Incarceration Programs: Cut Crime, Cut Costs and Help People and Communities
Alternative to Incarceration Programs (ATIs) are an integral part of the strategy that has allowed the City to reduce crime, reduce jail and prison populations, and help individuals and neighborhoods across the City. Instead of sentencing someone to jail or prison, ATIs allow a judge to sentence someone to a program where they receive treatment, education and employment training in the community, all the while remaining under strict supervision. And, if people do not succeed in these programs, the court still has the option of sentencing them to incarceration. Studies by the nation’s leading criminal justice researchers have shown that ATIs reduce jail time, and successfully treat people in the community without compromising public safety. All the while, ATIs are meeting the diverse needs of the people they serve, while enhancing the quality of life of the City’s most challenged communities.
Across the nation, states and cities face serious budget problems and are considering cuts to all sorts of programs. But cutting ATIs costs far more than it saves in the short term by driving up jail and prison populations, at great expense. Further, cuts to ATI programs could jeopardize the crime drop that is critical to New York’s future. An investment in ATIs is an investment in people who, with the right mix of services, programs, supervision and opportunities for change, could return to their communities to lead crime-free lives.