Karp (2002) argued that probation in the United States can be said to have originated from English criminal law during the middle ages. During these times, both adults and children were punished in the same harsh manner for crimes that were sometimes not very serious. It was common during the Middle Ages for convicted criminals to be flogged, mutilated and even executed. Minor offenses were punished by death during these days. The society began to resent these harsh punishments and started to demand changes in the judicial system (Karp, 2002).
Hamai (1995) stated that the society began to demand for changes in the judicial system. There was a general desire to mitigate these sentences that were mostly inhumane. As a result, various measures were taken and adopted. The society was very concerned about the state of the judiciary at that point. It was common for criminals to purchase their freedom, judges were giving lenient interpretations of the law in favor of some members of society and sometimes the judges devalued property in order to charge offenders with lesser crimes than they had committed (Hamai, 1995).
The courts then decided to introduce what was known then as "binding over for good behavior". "Binding over for good behavior" was a new practice where offenders were allowed to secure a release that was temporary. During this release, offenders had the chance to secure lesser sentences or even pardons. "Binding over for good behavior" was controversial because some courts started suspending sentences as a result. Probation in the United States has been developed at different rates in different states. Massachusetts was one of those states that witnessed a widespread development of probation in the United States.
[...] The third kind of probation is known as Restitution which is normally offered by the District Criminal Court for offenses that have to do with the destruction of property. The amount established by corrections is set by the judge that sentences the offender. The victim is assisted to recover through a corporate recovery process within an insurance cover. Offenders that have been sentenced are required to pay a given amount of money to corrections every month. This money paid by offenders is also known as the monitoring fees. [...]
[...] (2002). Probation. Georgetown Law Journal 90(133):56-83. Hamai, K. (1995). Probation Round the World. London: Routledge Karp, R.D. (2002). What is Community Justice?: Case Studies of Restorative Justice and Community Supervision. New York: Sage Publications. Latessa, E., & Holsinger, A. (2011). [...]
[...] Correctional Contexts: Contemporary and Classical Readings (4th ed.). New York: Oxford University Press. Smith, M. G. (1995). The Propriety and Usefulness of Geographical Restrictions Imposed as Conditions of Probation. Baylor Law Review, 47(13): 36-56. [...]
[...] There are many ways through which probation services in the United States can be improved. One way of addressing the challenges that face probation in the United States is through greater judicial involvement. More judicial involvement would be useful in monitoring the conditions under which probation is conducted. The judges could establish special drug courts, where the first-time drug offenders are identified by the judges and are sentenced to take part in drug testing and programs for rehabilitation. The judge would be required to personally monitor progress of the probation offenders. [...]
[...] Hundreds of independent agencies handle probation in the United States. All these agencies operate different state laws and are also influenced by various philosophies. More than half of these agencies that offer probation services for adults are run by the various states in the US. Other agencies are run by a combination of both the country and state laws. A good example is the state of Texas which has more than one hundred agencies, most of which are run at the local district level. [...]
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