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Text B. PROBATION AND OTHER ALTERNATIVES TO PRISON
Task 1. Skim the text. Where do the following sentences fit in the text? Put a
number 1-6 into the empty brackets:
1)
to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures as other people.
2)
Largely inspired by overcrowded and nonrehabilitative prisons
3)
Since one typical condition of probation is to obey all laws,
4)
to repay a debt to society for having committed the offence.
5)
that he is supervised while living in the community by a probation officer.
6)
it is likely that the court will conduct a probation recovering hearing.
Probation is a system that takes many different forms in different jurisdic-
tions. However, that essentially involves the suspension of sentence on the of-
fender subject to the condition (
…
). Common conditions of probation include:
obey all laws (even petty laws like jaywalking have been known to land a pro-
bationer back in jail); abide by any court orders, such as an order to pay a fine
or restitution; report regularly
to the probation officer; report any change of
employment or address to the probation officer; abstain from the excessive use
of alcohol or the
use of any drugs; refrain from travel outside of the jurisdic-
tion without prior permission of the probation officer, and avoid certain people
and places (for example, an offender convicted of assaulting his ex-wife may
have as one condition of probation that he avoid any contact with his ex-wife
or her family).
Probation officers also can check in on a probationer – at home or at work,
announced or unannounced. Some probationers
such as those convicted on
drug charges are also subject to random searches and drug tests. Most courts
have concluded that probationers do not have
the same Fourth Amendment
rights (
…
).
Most states limit when and under what circumstances a court may impose
probation on a criminal defendant.
For instance, some states do not allow a
judge to impose probation on defendants who have a prior conviction for co-
caine sales. When deciding whether to give a defendant probation (where it's
allowed), the judge will look at the defendant’s criminal
record and the seri-
ousness of the crime. The judge will also consider: whether the crime was vio-
lent; whether the defendant is a danger to society; whether the defendant made
or is willing to make restitution to the victim, and whether the victim was par-
tially at fault.
Defendants caught (either by police or probation officers) violating a con-
dition of probation are subject to having their probation revoked and all or part
of the original suspended jail or prison sentence reimposed. (
…
), a probationer
who is rearrested on even a minor charge may then be subject to penalties for
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both the current arrest and the probation violation.
If a probation violation
is discovered and reported, (
…
). If the defendant
violated
probation by breaking a law, the probation revocation hearing will
probably take place after the new offense has been disposed of. If the violation
was not illegal as such (for instance, socializing with people the judge prohib-
ited a defendant from contacting), then the revocation hearing
may take place
as soon as practicable after the violation is reported. Defendants are entitled to
written notification of the time, place and reason for the probation revocation.
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