Deducing a Sentence Considering the Probation Value Factor - Case Study Example

 PRE-SENTENCE REPORT Jon is a suspect with prior records of violence and has been convicted a number of times due to his poor conduct in the community when relating to the other people around him. His conduct has been deteriorating and further escalated by the fact that he takes large amounts of alcohol and drugs even though he knows that once he is under the influence of the substances, his judgment is impaired and he gets violent and makes poor decisions in the process. He is well aware that all the other cases of violence that he has had in the past took place when he was inebriated but he is not making any effort to reduce the amount of alcohol he consumes and has even taken to the consumption of a more lethal drug; cocaine. In the prior cases, he has never physically assaulted anyone but when he took cocaine on the most recent occasion, he assaulted the victim and almost caused injury to him in the process. The victim reports that he had been targeted by the suspect a number of times before but he felt threatened and intimidated by him therefore he never reported the incidences to the authorities but when he was physically assaulted, he felt the need to call the police and report as he felt the matter was getting out of hand. The suspect admits that whenever he is idle he gets the need to drink alcohol as a means of passing time and killing boredom. He says that he has not incurred any debt because of drugs and alcohol but concedes that they consume a large portion of his income. Jon has also had antidepressants prescribed for him to help stabilize him but he has declined to take the medicine saying that he is too young to seek relevance through medicine. Such uncooperative behavior and the fact that he is not getting any better in terms of his conduct around people makes it difficult for the law to be lenient with him. At this rate, Jon is a risk to the members of the community in which he lives because they can never know when he will get violent and might hurt someone badly if not watched carefully or given professional help. Mandatory counseling would be the best thing for him as a person as he is still a young person who needs a little guidance to grow up into a responsible man. The fact that his rap sheet is growing with even worse offences each time indicates a bad trend that need to be stemmed before he gets out of hand and cannot be helped at all. This is a risk to his life and the lives of the people who care about him or even the people who live with him in the same neighborhood. With all the above in consideration the recommended sentence for Jon would not be difficult to deduce but there is another factor that needs to be taken into consideration before the sentence is made. This is the probation value factor. Probation is supposed to help keep a convict in line and help them maintain that responsibility of having to respect the law as well as report to some relevant authority regularly to show them the progress they are making in their lives after following the recommendations of the magistrate. Probation is designed in such a manner that it helps the offenders to become better people and provides them with opportunities to practice the skills that they learn while on probation while at the same time giving them motivation to keep working on their skills until they are fully polished and can impact positively on their lives. Probation also helps the government and the prisons department to reduce the number of people in prison as they can be punished and rehabilitated from the outside. This means that intervention by the community is a better and proved way of helping the offenders to reform. The probation programs also lets the offenders to mix with people in the society in such a way that they do not feel marginalized just because they made offences and inclusion in the society makes the more motivated to try and reform and be like the other people in the society. They should also have the civil society agencies as well as the volunteers who have offered to work and help make the offenders better people who can be relied on in the society. This makes it easier for the offenders to be involved in the social inclusion program with great effects. The sentence for Jon here would be easy to settle on because he has broken several rules and has been getting away with it easily. It is now time for him to start a reforms program or face serious jail time if he can not adhere to the court orders. The sentence that would best fit his misdemeanors would be 100hours community service, a mandatory counseling program as well as supervision that runs for a year with a final warning. If he is involved in such cases again he will be incarcerated without a second thought to make him an example to the rest of the people who have habits like his and are not trying to change. This would sound a little harsh on Jon but the hours in community service would help him learn how to stay in a job so that if he gets a job after this program, he can sustain himself with the job while trying to avoid drugs by keeping himself busy. The mandatory counseling will see him visit a professional who will help guide him on the best ways to withdraw from drugs and alcohol without having adverse effects on him. Finally, the warning will always ring in his mind whenever he thinks of drinking again and help him make the correct decisions for himself. Jon is still young and such measures would definitely help him change his ways and become a responsible young man. References Bock, G., & Goode, J. (1996). Genetics of criminal and antisocial behaviour. Chichester: Wiley. Deering, J. (2011). Probation practice and the new penology: practitioner reflections. Farnham: Ashgate. Green, A., Lancaster, E., & Feasey, S. (2008). Addressing Offending Behaviour Context, Practice and Values.. Cullompton: Willan Pub.. Mitchell, C. (2008). The heartbreaking true story of a little boy and his violent childhood in working-class Dundee. London: Harper Element :. Summerhayes, S. (2010). Design risk management contribution to health and safety. Chichester, West Sussex, U.K.: Blackwell. Read More