If you have recently been convicted of driving under the influence, or DUI, in the State of Nebraska, or you have a DUI charge pending, you are likely concerned about your sentence and how it will impact your life if you are sentenced to a term of imprisonment. The good news is that if you are sentenced to serve a term of incarceration in the county jail Nebraska’s work release statute may allow you to leave the jail for work or school. The same statute may also authorize you to serve your sentence on house arrest instead of in the jail.
Nebraska Revised Statute 47-401 reads as follows:
“(1) Any person sentenced to a city or county jail upon conviction for a misdemeanor, a felony, contempt, or nonpayment of any fine or forfeiture may be granted the privilege of leaving the jail during necessary and reasonable hours for any of the following purposes:
- Seeking employment;
- Working at his or her employment;
- Conducting such person’s own business or other self-employed occupation, including housekeeping and attending to the needs of such person’s family;
- Attending any high school, college, university, or other educational or vocational training program or institution;
- Serious illness or death of a member of such person’s immediate family;
- Medical treatment; or
- Outpatient or inpatient treatment for alcohol or substance abuse.”
Section (3) of the same statute goes on to read:
“Any person sentenced to a city or county jail upon conviction for a misdemeanor, a felony, contempt, or nonpayment of any fine or forfeiture may be granted the privilege of serving all or part of the sentence under house arrest.”
The ability to leave the jail or to serve your sentence on house arrest are not automatic. Instead, you must petition the court for the right to exercise either of these options. Only upon written order of the court will you be allowed to leave the jail while serving your sentence or serve your sentence at home on house arrest.
If you are granted either privilege you will be very closely supervised. Any negative conduct in the jail will likely result in the revocation of your leave privileges. Likewise, any violation while on house arrest may result in a revocation of that privilege, resulting in your sentence being served in jail.
Ideally, you should petition for either of these option at the time of sentencing; however, the law does allow you to petition after your initial sentence has been handed down.
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