Probation is simply the deferring of a sentence when an offender
demonstrates potential for good behavior or is considered to be no
risk to the community.
Probation carries with it the implication of SUPERVISION.
In 1991, there were about 2.7 million offenders on probation in
the US. Today (mid 1994) there are an estimated 3 million.
Probation has long historical roots. It dervies from:
1) Benefit of Clergy (English Common law)
1200s to 1827, reading of psalm 54 ("Save me or GOd, by thy
name and vindicate me by thy might" etc)
2) Judicial Reprieve (also English common law): Suspension of
sentence on condition of good behavior
3) Recognizance (US, 1830s)--implied court supervision
4) The work of John Augustus in the mid-19th century (Father of
probation
Two conflicting views underlie probation:
1) Does it carry an "enforcer" role? (social control/punishment)
2) Does it carry a "social worker" role (rehabilitation)
Currently, several forms of probation:
1) Straight probation (screw up, and you serve time)
2) Split sentence - Incarcertation followed by probation
3) Modification of sentence (prison sentence, but parole
considered later)
4) Shock incarceration - short prison followed by probation
5) Intermittent Incarceration - example--weekends in jail
How does one get onto probation?
1) Low risk, rehab potention, something "going for them"
2) Good PSI (pre-sentence investigation) report
PSIs are controversial. Who should do them? What criteria should
be used? How much weight should they have? Should it
be "crime-specific" or "offender specific?"
Probation officers:
1) These are people who supervise probation
2) They tend to have heavy workloads (but--no evidence that
heavy work loads increase recidivism, but heavy loads are
difficult for case workers)
Termination of Probation
Probation ends in two ways:
1) Offender successfully completes it
2) Offender violates it and winds up incarcerated (this is called
a "technical violation")
For drug offenders, using drugs is a common violation. BUT: As the
book warns, returning drug abusers back to prison, except as a last
resort. Do you know why? (know it for the test)
Some Issues:
Who should run probation? Courts? Police? A separate bureaucracy?
The private sector? What should the goals of probation be?
Is it a good alternative to incarceration? Is it "soft on crime?"
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Some facts about PROBATION
NOTE: The 4.3 million alluded to below is now closer to 5 million.
Probation supervision in the community accounts for about 60% of the
4.3 million adults serving a sentence on a given day in the United
States. Offenders convicted of felonies comprise about half of the
probation population nationwide. While convicted felons on probation
outnumber the populations of San Diego or Detroit, little research
across multiple jurisdictions has examined possible public-safety
consequences of felony probation.
This report describes subsequent arrests and levels of compliance with
court-ordered requirements of a sample of felony probationers drawn
from 17 States. Within 3 years of sentencing in 1986, nearly 2 in 3
had been either arrested for a new felony or charged with violating
their supervision requirements. Among those discharged from
supervision, about half with financial obligations had not fully paid,
and about a third of those ordered to fill special conditions had
failed to satisfy those conditions. Overall, the data suggest that a
relatively small fraction of felony probationers fully comply with all
of the orders of the court.
Within 3 years of sentencing, while still on probation, 43% of these
felons were rearrested for a felony. Half of the arrests were for a
violent crime (murder, rape, robbery, or aggravated assault) or a drug
offense (drug trafficking or drug possession).
These findings are from the Nation's largest follow-up survey of
felons on probation, using a sample that represented a fourth of the
total 306,000 felons sentenced to probation in 1986. Survey findings
are based on criminal history records and information from probation
agency files. The other findings include the following:
* Sixty-two percent of the probationers followed either had a
disciplinary hearing for violating a condition of their probation or
were arrested for another felony.
* Within 3 years, 46% of all probationers had been sent to prison or
jail or had absconded (meaning their whereabouts were unknown or they
had failed to report).
* A probation department often recommends in writing an appropriate
sentence to the judge, who may accept or reject the recommendation.
Of the 79,000 probationers in the follow-up survey, 21% had not been
recommended for supervision in the community.
* The 21% of probationers who were not recommended for probation were
nearly twice as likely to have their sentence revoked and to be sent
to prison (37%) as those recommended for probation (22%).
* As a condition of their freedom, 53% of all felony probationers had
a special condition to satisfy and 84% had a financial penalty to pay.
* The most commonly imposed special conditions required drug testing
(31%), drug treatment (23%), or alcohol treatment (14%).
* Types of financial penalties included victim restitution (29%),
court costs (48%), and probation supervision fees (32%).
* The average financial penalty was $1,800: victim restitution with an
average of $3,400; court costs, $560; and supervision, $680.
* Among probationers completing their probation term within the 3-year
period covered in the survey, 69% of those with special conditions had
fully satisfied all conditions and 47% of those with a financial
penalty had paid their penalty in full.
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