The ICAOS applies to all offenders meeting the eligibility requirements and who are subject to some form of community supervision or corrections. By design, the term “offender” provides greater scope and flexibility in the management of offender populations as sentencing practices change. Therefore, whether an offender is “sentenced” and subject to formal “probation” or “parole” is a largely irrelevant inquiry. From the judiciary’s perspective the relevant inquiry in determining whether ICAOS is a factor centers on two considerations: (1) what did the court do, and (2) was the end consequence of the court’s action community supervision. In this way, the ICAOS applies in a broad range of cases and dispositions beyond traditional conviction followed by probation or parole.

The Commission does not consider provisions such as “bench” probation to be eligible for transfer under the ICAOS, since these provisions are more in line with “go and commit no further offenses.” The supervision intended by the Commission is more formal, with elements similar to traditional notions of regular reporting and supervision requirements. A sentence that essentially states “go and commit no other offense” and that does not include supervision and reporting requirements does not create a “supervision” relationship between the offender and the court sufficient to trigger the ICAOS. However, to the extent that reporting requirements may be imposed on an offender, even if only to the court, that offender may be subject to the ICAOS if all other eligibility requirements are met. This is a particularly important consideration when courts sentence offenders to probation with only a treatment element and reporting requirements. Such offenders may be subject to the ICAOS. See discussion, infra at 3.2.2.1.