We used to let people do military service as an alternative sentence for minor infractions, but that led to a lot of antisocial behavior in an institution that

We used to let people do military service as an alternative sentence for minor infractions, but that led to a lot of antisocial behavior in an institution that requires order to function (it stopped after Vietnam). There's a reason why when Russia did the same thing recently, the prisoners were used as first-wave cannon fodder and left the actual fighting to Wagner...criminals tend to lack discipline. There's room for a middle option between passivity and slavery/prison. Some people need to be wards of somebody, so set up an institution like the military (endless boot camp, or the mining-town setups of old) and use that for alternate sentencing. Last chance: you get training, a mandatory job, shitty housing, and limited freedom (shore leave/weekend passes). It's not ideal, so work the program as long as you need to and GTFO. Fuck it up and next time you will go to prison.