Table of Contents
Introduction
A person is put on probation once they are charged in a court of law and found guilty. They may have partly served a jail sentence before he is on probation. The aim of this process is to ensure that the said person changes for better while simultaneously inflicting pain on them to put balance and ensure that they pay for the offenses they committed (Cheston, 2015). When the offender violates the rules underlying the probation, the Probation officer leading them can violate the process and sent them back to jail (Goodman, 2012). The paper will discuss how an offender can be handled based on these discretions and help them walk on the correct path.
How a Correctional Officer can Enforce Provisions of Probation
First, as a Probation Officer under a duty assigned to me by laid down rules, the most important thing is to understand my role both to the court and to the offender. Under an obligation, working towards positively changing the offender (rehabilitation) and punishment for an offence committed should be the ultimate goal while upholding the constitution (Cheston, 2015). In this case, I would first understand the offenders’ point of view so that I can address his issues perfectly (Terry & Presser, 2002). After getting to know the person well, it will be much easier to help in the rehabilitation of the person of interest as I will be dealing with facts on the ground rather than dealing with ambiguity.
Secondly, I would embrace motivational speaking to the offender. Motivational speaking would assist to change the thinking of the offender so that he can appreciate doing what is right without causing any harm to the public (Goodman, 2012). While doing this, I should tie together his behavior and punishment which helps the Offenders to see the consequences so as to assist makes them want to change.
Helping the Offender stay “Straight and Narrow”
On the punishment side, I will first explain to the offender why the punishment is important as he is not the only affected person but also the people that he inflicted pain on. This will help ensure that the offender is positive towards the punishment as this helps in achieving the desired change (Cornelius, 2010). If he accepts the need for the punishment, working towards the change will be much easier.
Utilizing the Discretion
Based on the willingness of the offender to change, I will decide on whether to send him back to jail or not. On my comprehension of this person through our interaction, I can tell if a change is possible or not and if yes, I will not violate the probation but instead give them more time to see if change comes up (Cornelius, 2010). On the other hand, if the person is not showing any sign of changing even after giving them several chances to do so, I will make the decision for them to return to custody as failure to do so may pose a threat to the public (Cheston, 2015).
Conclusion
In a nutshel, achieving probation goals takes the efforts of both the offender and the probation officer. For one to get the desired goals, the probation officer needs to focus on the ultimate goal and closely interact with the offender so that they can work together to succeed and if, after all this change impossible, the officer can violate the probation.
- Cheston, L. (2015). Book review: Offender Supervision in Europe. Probation Journal, 62(1), 83-84.
- Terry, C. & Presser, L. (2002). Book Review: Making Good: How Ex-Convicts Reform and Rebuild their Lives. Theoretical Criminology, 6(2), 227-234.
- Goodman, A. (2012). Rehabilitating and resettling offenders in the community (1st ed.). Chichester: John Wiley & Sons.
- Cornelius, G. (2010). The correctional officer (1st ed.). Durham, N.C.: Carolina Academic Press.