Probation officers wear many different hats; some are those that they never dreamed about when becoming an officer of the court. Probation officers are the offenders’ friend, confidant, mental health counselor or even a parent to an offender that may be just turning 18, who has not had a parent influence. This feeling of someone looking out for the offender may make the offender feel more comfortable and willing to work with the officer. However, the probation officer needs to be able to establish the relationship but keep it more of a professional relationship so the offender does not become confused. Setting the standards and expectations with the offender may allow the offender to understand the limits and expectations. Often times a probation officer needs to be able to sit down and speak to their offender on a personal level gaining the trust and respect of them. Probation is defined as a suspension of a jail sentence, allowing the convicted person to remain within the community (FindLaw, 2015). Sometimes there is a misunderstanding the difference between probation and parole. Probation allows the offender to not serve any jail time, while parole is a release from prison on conditions allowing the offender to complete their sentence within the community. Probation has three primary goals to rehabilitate the offender, protect society from further criminal conduct by the offender, and to protect the rights of victims (Probation, 2015).
Probation started many
A probation officer’s has many duties to fulfill. They are not only supervising the offenders that live within the community, but by monitoring probationers’ progress. The offender must stay away of any trouble, yet comply with the rules and regulations required. A probation officer should help the offender resume a better, productive life for themselves. They should also make it their duty to help them to rehabilitate and be placed back into the
Probation is a court-ordered sanction. The goal being to retain some control over the offenders while allowing them to remain in the community. Probation first developed in the United States in 1841 with John Augustus, who was a Boston cobbler. He convinced the Boston police to release an adult into his custody instead of sending them to prison. (Klein, 1997) He was successful with this adult that he went back to the courts to ask for another convicted adult to be release under his supervision. Many in the police department and court system did not like this because as long as he was taking inmates they were not getting paid.
Probation officers serve as supervisors and mentors for offenders who are trying to get back on their feet. When a convicted offender is released on probation, the officers have to help set up counseling appointments, educational programs, employment opportunities, and housing. The duty as a probation officer is to make sure an offender attends any counseling, job training, and work to get them involved in social activities needed with their rehabilitation. An interesting fact about a probation officer is that they spend most of their time doing paperwork. Although probation officers visit their clients, and do regular drug test on them, they spend most of the time doing paper work and documenting their client’s progress. You would have to have a big passion for helping others because the job can seem boring to people who do not have a desire to help people. The officers monitor offenders to prevent them from committing new crimes. This helps to try and make the world a better place.
Before we explore the roles and responsibilities of a Juvenile Probation Officer we first must explore the juvenile justice system itself as well as to why it was set in place. In the United States, juveniles that fell into trouble with the law were automatically treated different from adults. Before the juvenile courts were established, children under the age of 7 were never really held responsible for their criminal acts. The law considered them unable to commit any criminal intent, however this could be disproved if the child knew that the act he or she was committing was a crime or that it would cause harm to another
by painting an image that it is easy going on criminals, and as a result, maintains little support from the community. Probation is often portrayed as lax, shows minimum effort to support crime victims, and blindly promote a rehabilitative ideal while ignoring the reality of violent criminals. Probation may work for first time offenders, who commit non violent, non predatory crimes, and also for juveniles. The lack of funds that probation receives causes problems for probation officers to thoroughly do their jobs. They often have hundreds of caseloads to follow up on and often cannot meet
Families can remain together, and parents can work and remain a stable presence in their households. The probation department can work to rehabilitate the offender through a variety of social services, such as drug or alcohol treatment or life skills classes.” (Thompson). Probation, in comparison to prison or jail is very effective in saving money while also making society better as a whole because of the affect that it has on the individual. While on the outside, the offender has the chance to reunite and make amends with family members and people that are close to them, but just as important, they have the chance to find a job through the services distributed by the probation officer overseeing them. The constant checkups, monitoring, and rule regulations give the probationer a more structured lifestyle, something perhaps they haven’t had
As a probation officer you have to enforce rules and keep orders with in prison. They also supervise the activities of the inmates. Aid in rehabilitation and counseling of prisoners is another duty an officer needs to do. A officer inspects facilities to ensure that they meet security and safety standards. Searching inmates for contraband items is part of their job. Last but not least
Probation and parole are two words that people often get confused. They seem similar, but they have two different meanings. Probation is when an offender has committed a crime, but the judge decided that the crime was not worth incarceration or it may be the first time the offender has been in trouble. Probation is most often used for misdemeanors, non-violent felonies, and property crimes. Basically, it gives the offender some time to show the judge that they can change their behavior without having to serve time in prison. The offender should avoid getting into any kind of trouble. If the offender was to get into trouble while on probation, it can cause them to be incarcerated for the maximum sentence. Parole is when an offender goes to prison for a crime, and then that offender then is released because of good time. The offender then serves the rest of their time in the community under supervision. Often the supervising officers work for the same agency – probation and parole. Sometimes, though, probation officers work for the court instead
Such as, communication skills, Probation officers must be able to effectively interact with many different people such as probationers and their family members, lawyers, judges, treatment providers, and law enforcement. Also, critical thinking skills, assess the needs of individual probationers before determining the best resources for helping them, decision making skills, consider the relative costs and benefits of potential actions and be able to choose appropriately. Emotionally stability, probation officer must cope with hostile individuals or otherwise upsetting circumstances on the job, and have emotional stability, be able to manage multiple cases at the same time” (Occupational Outlook Handbook). It’s very important to be trained to work in the criminal justice field, have patience and know what to when one is under pressure. know that the qualities will be discussed, let’s talk about the pay
“Probation is a sentence that does not include confinement and imposes conditions governing the release of the offender into the community based on good behavior” (pg. 97 Schmalleger) Probation is a pathway for convicted individuals to be able to return to society and live out their life, while still being monitored. In order to receive probation you must meet certain aspect of good behavior and the court must take into consideration the crime that has been committed. Not everyone is eligible to be put on probation due to the severity of their crime and their behavior within the prison. So exactly who should be eligible for probation. Individuals who have committed minor offenses are usually ones to receive probation. Not only does this help
Probation is a very important part of the criminal justice system; there are many more units besides supervision. Probation has more to it than supervision it has Pre-sentence investigative unit and the juvenile unit plus many more. There are so many additional responsibilities with these categories of probation. Some require more attention than others because there are more responsibilities People can get probation for many reason adults and kids. Here are the different categories of probation and what they do for the criminal justice system and why they are important to it.
The mission of Probation and Parole is to provide for public safety through the supervision of adult felons under either probation or parole jurisdiction. Also, Probation and Parole involve all facets of the community, which includes, but is not limited to, victims and their families, programs for offenders, their families, involvement in community activities and partnerships with other criminal justice agencies. We also provide offenders the opportunity to make positive changes while in the community by providing individual support, programs and assistance. Nonetheless, accountability and protection are provided by individual case management plans that are created, monitored and supervised through
A crucial part of the criminal justice system includes probation. Probation is the release of a criminal offender from detention or incarceration. At this time, the offender is subject to a period of good behavior under supervision. Probation is also referred to a kind of punishment that is giving as part of sentencing. Instead of giving an offender a longer sentence, a judge will order the defendant to report to their assigned probation officer on a regular basis, where the offender will receive a schedule instructing him or her of their probation requirements. If the defendant does not obey a probation order, the defendant will automatically return to jail or to court, only to be given a longer sentence by the judge. A person on probation is not allowed to leave the judicial district without permission of the probation officer or court (Seiter, 2011). The probationer shall report to the probation officer as directed and shall submit truthful and complete reports (Seiter, 2011). A person on probation must also follow all directions instructed by his or her probation officer truthfully. When on probation, an offender must obtain employment and needs to notify his or her probation officer of all changes of address within a three-day limit. The probationer shall also refrain from the excessive use of alcohol
The probation officers main goal is to provide rehabilitative programs for probationers to develop a unique understanding of what contributes to probationers success. Most police officers believe that the safety of the public is a big concern due to the fact that most offenders
Correctional facilities play an integral role in the criminal justice system as many individuals who are convicted of offenses are normally placed on probation rather than being sent to prison. In other cases, convicted criminals who have served their jail terms are usually released on parole. In addition to meeting other requirements, criminals are required to stay out of trouble during parole and probation periods. In order to prevent offenders from committing new offenses; probation, parole, and correctional treatments officers and specialists are involved in supervision of these criminals. Probation officers are involved in supervising criminals placed on probation rather than prison while parole officers supervise those who have been released from prison. On the other hand, correctional treatment specialists counsel criminals and develop rehabilitation plans for them to follow upon their release from prison or parole.