Suspension Window

A legal term used in a criminal sentence to describe the period of time a remaining term of the sentence could still be imposed if certain conditions are not met.

For example, “12 months in the house of corrections with all but 30 days suspended for one year, conditioned upon good behavior and no contact with the victim.” This means the defendant will serve 30 days in the house of corrections and the remaining 11 months are suspended for one year. The suspension window is one year. If the defendant fails to be of good behavior during the one year period the 11 months in jail could be imposed by the court. The sentence ends one year from the date it is issued by the court.