What Are The Consequences Of Violating Probation?

After you are convicted of a crime and sent to prison, once you’re released, there is a probationary period in which you are monitored to ensure that you change your ways. In judicial terms, that probationary period is called “probation.” The conditions of  probation are made according to the judge presiding over the case and the severity of the criminal act.

Included in the probation are conditions that a person must follow, or they will either face jail time or be returned to prison, depending on where they are in the criminal justice system. Several factors determine probation. In some instances, probation will require abstaining from drugs, not leaving the state, not drinking alcohol, or meeting with an officer of the court on a regular basis. Whatever the conditions are, they must be followed precisely to avoid getting into trouble.

A probation violation lawyer will confirm that if you violate your probation, there are consequences. The result is determined by factors such as how serious your crime was, the violation and how many times you have violated the conditions of your probation. There are typically stages of consequences that you can go through.

A Warning

In most instances, if you violate your probation, you will be reprimanded by your probation officer for the first offense. If the officer determines that it wasn’t a significant violation, they might decide not to involve the court — which would increase the judicial workload — and they will handle it themselves. If it is a minor infraction, then a warning is the probable course of action. If you don’t do anything more to violate your probation, then there should not be any more consequences.

Community Service

When you break your probationary contract, then you might be subject to community service hours. Community service hours are hours where you give your time to perform community acts around your area. They are meant as a punishment for your violation and as a deterrent to doing it again.

Rehabilitation

Many probation conditions include that you not take drugs or drink alcohol. You might be subjected to taking periodic or spontaneous drug tests to check your system. If you violate the conditions of your probation by testing positive for drugs, then you will probably be ordered into a drug rehabilitation program, or you might be remanded back into custody because that option is less expensive for the state.

Counseling

If you violate your probation, but there is a suspected underlying mental condition, then you might be court-ordered to show up for counseling services or to be evaluated by a professional to find any mental condition that might benefit from medication.

Fines

In some instances when you violate probation, you can be subject to fines. There are times when you might have to pay restitution in the form of money to the victims of your crime, or you will have to pay the court itself.

Jail

Some probation violations are so egregious that they will land you in jail, even if you weren’t there originally. Or you can be sent back to jail if you were recently sentenced to prison and are out on probation.

An increase in probationary period

If you violate your probation, then you might have your probation period increased. That means that you will be monitored for a longer period than originally sentenced to.

Revoking your probation

If you do something significant enough, you might have your probation revoked and have to return to jail to finish out your sentence. There is a maximum amount of time that a court can order for your sentence, but you will have to go back to prison to finish it out.

New charges

If you commit another crime while you are on probation, you might be brought up on more charges, which will put you back into the criminal justice system. Your criminal history is typically taken into account before new charges are levied.

Other consequences

Depending on whether it is a state or federal crime for which you are serving your probation,  other fines or punishments might be prescribed if you violate your probation. Officers and judges have many resources at their discretion to determine punishment for your probation violation.

Probation is a way that a person is allowed to have a second chance. If you are lucky enough to get probation, it is key that you follow the conditions of your probation without fail. It is a privilege that can be revoked anytime you violate your probationary conditions, so pay close attention to stay out of trouble and jail.