Probation and Parole - General

The Impact of Probation and Parole Populations on Arrests in Four California Cities

This study’s purpose was to “determine the extent to which people on probation and parole contribute to the demands on the resources of local law enforcement, and to identify what opportunities exist to use data to target their limited resources more effectively” (p. 3). Some of the findings show that: only one in five arrests are people on probation or parole; for these individuals one in six arrests were for violent crime, one in three for drug crime; and an...

Civil Liabilities and Other Legal Issues for Probation/Parole Officers and Supervisors: 4th Edition

The legal liabilities that probation and parole officers face as they perform their duties are explained. Chapters comprising this publication are: an overview of state and federal legal liabilities; civil liability under state law-state tort cases; civil liability under federal law-Section 1983 cases; legal representation, attorneys’ fees, and indemnification; presentence and preparole investigations and reports; supervision; conditions, modifications, and changes in status; revocation; emerging trends concerning liability of probation and parole officers for supervisors; vicarious liability; direct liability for supervisors...

Promising Victim Related Practices in Probation and Parole Fact Sheet Series

Access to eight fact sheets “on topics related to crime victims and victims’ needs throughout the community corrections process” is provided. Topics covered are: The Role of Community Corrections in Victim Services; Collaboration and Partnership for Victim Services in Community Corrections; Family Violence; Restitution and Other Legal Financial Obligations; Seeking Victim Input; Victim Information and Notification; Victim/Offender Programs; and Workplace Violence.

Changing Probation Officer Attitudes: Training Experience, Motivation, and Knowledge

The impact of evidence-based training on the level of probation officers’ (POs) knowledge of “what works” in effective interventions and also on the POs’ attitudes about providing better service are examined. This study shows that “the training had an immediate effect on several indicators regarding knowledge of evidence-based correctional practices, belief in self-efficacy regarding offender change (on the part of probation officers), and an increasing awareness of the importance of core correctional practices and the effectiveness of the IBIS [Integrated...

Profiting from Probation: America's “Offender-Funded” Probation Industry

The issue of “offender-funded” probation services is an under-reported and often unknown element of the criminal justice system in the United States. This report is essential reading for anyone interested in the current state of corrections. “Every year US courts sentence several hundred thousand misdemeanor offenders to probation and place them under the supervision of private, for-profit probation companies. These companies charge courts nothing for their services. Instead, they charge those they supervise a range of fees that sometimes become...

Promising Victim Related Practices in Probation and Parole: Training Curriculum [and] Participant Manual [Lesson Plans and Participants' Manual]

“The goal of this training program is to provide community corrections officers with information on strategies they can use to enhance their interactions with and services to crime victims. By the conclusion of this training participants will be able to: 

• describe the impacts and implications of crime on its victims; 
• identify the specific rights of victims, and describe the role of community corrections staff in implementing victims’ rights; 
• demonstrate skills for communicating effectively with crime victims; 
• identify 4-5 approaches for...

A Review of Probation Home Visits: What Do We Know?

"Although home visits are seen as a critical tool employed by probation officers, recent evidence demonstrates that home visits are rarely conducted, even for high-risk offenders who might benefit from them the most ... Because there are costs (such as probation officer time and safety risks) associated with conducting field work, we need to understand the role of home visits in modern probation agencies and determine best practices of how they should be implemented to meet intended goals. This article...

Practical Implications of Current Domestic Violence Research for Probation Officers and Administrators

"This booklet looks at the recent research on intimate partner violence and analyzes what it reveals that probation officers and administrators should know to do their jobs better in terms of completing PSI [presentence investigative report] for defendants convicted of intimate partner violence, supervising abusers on their caseloads, and dealing with the victims of these abusers on probation and victims who have also ended up on probation caseloads. Although much of the research is not focused directly on probation, what...