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Priority Issues: Adult Probation

I. The Issue

When spending taxpayer money on criminal justice, it is counterproductive and wasteful to enact policies that create more criminals, rather than enacting policies that reduce the incidence of crime. Taxpayers do not always benefit from sending low-risk offenders, especially first-time nonviolent felons, to prison. In prison, the offender is surrounded by other felons and removed from his family and community. Because the offender is unable to work and earn income, he may be unable to pay adequate restitution to the victim of the crime. Moreover, when he is released, he will be forced to transition back to life outside of prison, with the additional stigma of having been sent to prison. If he does not transition effectively, the state will quite possibly have transformed a low-risk nonviolent offender into a career criminal.  In effect, taxpayers will have spent more money to become less safe.

As Mark Earley and Newt Gingrich have noted, “[j]ust as a student’s success isn’t measured by his entry into high school but by his graduation…celebrating taking criminals off the street with little thought to their imminent return to society is foolhardy."

II. The Impact

Probation presents an alternative to incarceration for certain low-risk offenders, and it carries three advantages when implemented appropriately. First, instead of sending the low-risk offender to prison, probation allows him a chance to remain in the community, which keeps family structures together, keeps a potentially productive worker available in the workforce, and allows the offender to be rehabilitated without suffering the stigma of having been in prison.

Secondly, because probation allows an offender to keep a job and earn income, it increases the likelihood that the offender will be able to pay proper restitution to the victim of his crime.

Third, because probation is significantly cheaper than incarceration, it can be a cost-effective form of rehabilitation. In Missouri, for example, incarceration is five times as expensive as probation, and the state has begun notifying judges of the costs of the sentences they administer. Lengthy and expensive sentences are necessary and unavoidable for serious offenders – but not necessarily for low-level, non-violent offenders.  For these individuals, probation may be offered, and it may be conditioned on the offender receiving important services, like regular attendance at drug or psychiatric counseling, which can reduce the likelihood of recidivism. Thus, in some cases, society’s public safety goals may be achieved without the costs of incarcerating, facilitating reentry, and tracking down and re-incarcerating offenders who have become career criminals.

Probation can be made particularly efficient through the use of risk assessments, which are inventories containing questions designed to predict whether the individual will recidivate. The risk factors inquired about may include age, criminal record, employment status, history of substance use, and age of first offense. A risk assessment instrument can be administered when an offender begins probation to determine the appropriate level of supervision.

III. The Conservative Solution

• For low-level drug offenders with no violent prior crimes or sex offenses, in lieu of incarceration consider requiring probation with drug or psychiatric treatment.

• Research and utilize evidence-based best practices, such as risk assessments, to determine which offenders are low-risk for recidivism and thus better served by conditional probation.

• Enhance the use of problem-solving courts, such as drug courts, DWI courts, etc. These courts can provide specialized oversight and victim-offender mediation that present a low-cost alternative to incarceration.

• Give victims the right, upon request, to be informed of relevant proceedings, attend those proceedings, and express a preference to the prosecutor on the type of sentence.

• Institute performance-based funding for probation departments. Local probation departments that are successful should receive additional funds in order to further develop their methods. Other departments will adopt proven successful methods in order to qualify for enhanced funding.

  • Grover Norquist on Michael Medved radio show

    Posted in Adult Probation, Audio, California, Law Enforcement, Oregon, Overcriminalization, Parole and Re-Entry, Prisons, ROC Blog, Substance Abuse, Texas: May 9, 2013 by Brendan Steinhauser

    Here is a partial transcript from a recent Michael Medved radio show, where he interviewed signatory Grover Norquist about our work on criminal justice reform. They discussed the conservative way forward for prison reform, and ensuring that taxpayers get the best deal from the system, all while reducing crime and recidivism. Medved: So are we [...]

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  • TPPF and Marc Levin in Texas Monthly

    Posted in Adult Probation, Law Enforcement, Prisons, ROC Blog, Substance Abuse, Texas: May 6, 2013 by Brendan Steinhauser

    Check out this great article about Right on Crime principles and policies in Texas. It features Marc Levin and the Texas Public Policy Foundation for their work fighting crime and saving money at the same time. With orders from the LBB and political cover from TAB, the infantry in the trenches is a coalition force [...]

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  • Senator Rand Paul talks criminal justice at Howard University

    Posted in Adult Probation, Juvenile Justice, Kentucky, Law Enforcement, Overcriminalization, Parole and Re-Entry, Prisons, ROC Blog, Substance Abuse: April 10, 2013 by Brendan Steinhauser

    Read the full text of Senator Rand Paul’s speech at Howard University today. He focused on how conservative values, including those that deal with criminal justice reform, can better people’s lives and limit government power. Here is an excerpt from the speech today. Our federal mandatory minimum sentences are simply heavy handed and arbitrary. They [...]

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  • New Cascade Policy Institute paper on criminal justice reform in Oregon

    Posted in Adult Probation, Law Enforcement, Oregon, Prisons, ROC Blog: April 3, 2013 by Brendan Steinhauser

    Check out the brand new paper released by the Cascade Policy Institute in Oregon. It’s entitled, “Protecting Public Safety and Reducing Correctional Costs in Oregon.” Here is an excerpt: It is also the case that effective law enforcement strategies deter crime, and sensible approaches to community corrections may reduce recidivism. For these and other reasons, [...]

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  • Good article on mandatory minimums

    Posted in Adult Probation, Arizona, Oregon, Overcriminalization, Prisons, ROC Blog: April 2, 2013 by Brendan Steinhauser

    Check out this article from an activist in Arizona about mandatory minimums. The writer makes some good points and mentions the Right on Crime campaign! It is for this reason I am proud to be affiliated with Right On Crime, a campaign dedicated to “fighting crime, restoring victims and protecting the taxpayer.” Endorsed by prominent [...]

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  • West Virginia Senate Passes Criminal Justice Reform Bill

    Posted in Adult Probation, Law Enforcement, Parole and Re-Entry, ROC Blog, Substance Abuse, Victims: March 28, 2013 by Brendan Steinhauser

    A few days ago, the West Virginia State Senate passed criminal justice reform bill SB371 by an overwhelming vote of 33-0. It’s unusual for any legislative body to pass a bill with zero “No” votes, but that’s exactly what happened on Thursday. The legislation, which would help West Virginia achieve the goals of ensuring public [...]

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  • Reason Magazine mentions our work

    Posted in Adult Probation, Florida, Overcriminalization, Prisons, ROC Blog, Texas: March 26, 2013 by Brendan Steinhauser

    This morning on Fox News Sunday Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) gave his most extensive answer yet on how he feels about U.S. drug laws. The short version: He doesn’t endorse legalizing drugs, but he also doesn’t want to lock up nonviolent offenders for “extended periods of time.” All that said, there’s another way to look at [...]

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  • Two Smart on Crime States Post Results

    Posted in Adult Probation, Pennsylvania, Priority Issues, ROC Blog, South Carolina, State Initiatives: February 8, 2013 by Jeanette Moll

    Taxpayers in Pennsylvania are footing the bill for 454 fewer inmates this month than they were a year ago, while South Carolina’s citizens are paying for 2,700 fewer inmates. Why? Pennsylvania created a more effective parole and processing system, while recent legislative alterations to drug and low-level crimes…

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  • Texas Diversion Funding Correlates with Reduced Crime

    Posted in Adult Probation, Priority Issues, ROC Blog, State Initiatives, Texas: December 10, 2012 by Jeanette Moll

    Recent Legislatures in Texas have diverted some funding from state lockups to community-based supervision and diversions. Reallocating funding in this way continues to better protect the public safety and reduce crime, as a recent report details.

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  • Arizona Since the Safe Communities Act

    Posted in Adult Probation, Arizona, Priority Issues, ROC Blog, State Initiatives: October 22, 2012 by Vikrant P. Reddy

    In 2008, Arizona passed the Safe Communities Act, which authorized courts to adjust the sentences of probationers based on the recommendations of probation officers. The legislation also included performance incentives, which encouraged…

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