DuPage sheriff swaps alternative sentencing program back in

A popular sentencing alternative to jail has been reinstituted by DuPage County Sheriff John Zaruba.

The Sheriff's Work Alternative Program, or SWAP for short, was cut in 2007 as the county looked to trim operational budgets in every office.

But since a quarter-percent sales tax increase was enacted more than a year ago to help offset budget shortfalls for public safety departments, rumors have swirled about SWAP making a comeback. Monday, Zaruba made it official.

Nonviolent offenders will be eligible for the program that reduce the jail population and the cost of its operation.

Offenders sentenced to the program perform community service throughout the county by cleaning up roadside trash, removing gang graffiti or taking part in beautification projects in communities throughout DuPage, according to a release from Zaruba's office.

Offenders are sentenced to between five and 10 days of SWAP service and have one to three months to complete their punishment. The offenders are transported to work sites in sheriff's office vans and supervised by specially trained uniformed deputies.

When it was scuttled in 2007, it cost about $180,000 a year to run the program. Offenders paid $25 to register and an additional $1 an hour they worked instead of going to jail. There had been talk in 2007 of increasing the cost of the program to make it self-funded. Zaruba did not say Monday how the reincarnated program will be funded.

For more information on SWAP call the sheriff's office at (630) 407-2280.