Christopher Johnson used to come and go as he pleased. Now, the roofer won’t step outside his house without asking permission from the state police. &uot;It’s hard to adjust to,&uot; admits the Adams County resident.

But as one of 11 people in the county serving sentences by house arrest, Johnson is learning to adjust — willingly.

After all, if he violates the terms of the Intensive Supervision Program, he’ll be sent to prison.

&uot;It’s nice to be home,&uot; Johnson said. &uot;I’d rather be here than up yonder (in prison).&uot;

The program is coordinated by the Mississippi Department of Corrections and is available to nonviolent offenders, such as Johnson who was convicted of burglary and then parole violations.

Under the house arrest program, Johnson wears an unbreakable electronic watch on his arm. The device alerts officers if he steps outside his house at an unauthorized time.

&uot;Now I have a schedule to go by and I have to work with that,&uot; Johnson said.

Inmates under house arrest are required to hold jobs so they are able to pay for their own expenses, including a $50 a month ISP supervision fee. The inmates check in once a week with the MDOC office for drug testing and approval of their upcoming work schedule.

&uot;A lot of these inmates will get two or three jobs because they can’t go anywhere (else) and they don’t want to stay home,&uot; said Michael &uot;Country&uot; Jaynes, probation and parole field officer for the area.

Participants are subject to unannounced drug tests and officers also periodically stop by their houses and workplaces unannounced, said Ronald Brown, probation and parole supervisor and training officer for the MDOC.

That is how the officers caught the one Adams County female who failed the program. The woman was scheduled to be at work, but when officers checked they discovered she had the day off.

They found her in a bar, and she was promptly sent back to jail.

&uot;That goes to show you we are supervising them like we’re supposed to because if they do anything wrong, they’re gone,&uot; Brown said.

In addition to the curfew restrictions, inmates under house arrest cannot have drugs, alcohol or firearms at their residence. Their houses are searched on a random basis by their parole supervisor.

And when inmates sign an agreement to enter the program, they also agree to those terms which apply to everyone in the house — including visitors, Brown said.

It’s a strict requirement, but &uot;if they want to do it, they’re going to do it,&uot;&160;Jaynes said.

Only nonviolent offenders — such as those convicted of drug possession, third-offense DUI, felony shoplifting or writing bad checks — are eligible for the one-year program.

And while many inmates cannot follow the rules of simple probation, the house arrest program proves effective for willing participants, officers said.

&uot;They can keep their job, pay taxes and take care of their families,&uot; Brown said.

Seventy-one of the 82 counties in Mississippi have an ISP program. Since the state Legislature began phasing in the program in 1996, 3,593 inmates have completed it; 2,286 have failed.

Adams County Circuit Judge Forest &uot;Al&uot; Johnson began sentencing inmates in November to the program. Currently, 77 inmates in 10 counties in southwest Mississippi participate in the program, including 11 in Adams; three in Franklin; and six in Amite and Wilkinson counties.

&uot;The good thing about this program is these inmates … go straight back to jail&uot; in a matter of hours if they break a rule — without having to go before a judge, Brown said.

Designed to reduce prison overcrowding, officers say the program has an important additional benefit: It is cheaper than other forms of incarceration.

For example, the cost to house a prisoner in a county jail is approximately $22.21 per day; in a work center, $33.69; in a restitution center, $23.53; and in the Intensive Supervision Program, $6.46 per day.

&uot;When they’re in this program, it’s no expense to taxpayers,&uot; Brown said, explaining that the inmates actually can become taxpayers through their job earnings.

&uot;They become productive members of society,&uot; Jaynes said.

Officers such as Brown are sold on the program.

&uot;We’ve had good results with it,&uot; he said.

Inmates, too, see the benefits. Priscilla Thompson is serving her sentence for felony shoplifting through the Intensive Supervision Program.

After two weeks under house arrest — and having to explain the restrictions to her three young sons — Thompson said she has learned a valuable lesson.

&uot;It makes you realize you don’t need trouble, especially when you have three small kids,&uot; she said.

For Natchez resident Ronald Stone, on house arrest for violating his probation on a burglary conviction, the ISP program is a better alternative than jail.

&uot;You have a chance to work and save your money,&uot; Stone said. &uot;You have all the comforts of home and your privacy.&uot;