What Are the Costs and Benefits of Probation?

Taxman, Faye S.; Maass, Stephanie

doi:10.1057/978-1-137-51982-5_9

Cited by 8 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…For these reasons, prison sentences, which remove and alienate individuals from their families and communities, are particularly consequential. Sentences that involve probation or jail with probation are more likely to allow individuals to remain in their communities, where they may keep professional relationships, families, networks, and lives intact (Taxman & Maass, 2016).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The lengthier incarceration periods associated with prison also mean more extended absences from the labor market, depressing job prospects, incomes, and human capital (Turney & Conner, 2019). Time served in higher security environments may also come with heightened stigma (e.g., Bench & Allen, 2003; Taxman & Maass, 2016). In contrast, sanctions that involve probation or a combination of jail and probation typically allow individuals to remain members of their communities and to engage with community resources (e.g., health, educational, vocational) that improve their quality of life and their ability to be law-abiding members of society (Taxman & Maass, 2016).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The eye of the beholder: Increased likelihood of prison sentences for people perceived to have Hispanic ethnicity.

Girvan¹,

Marek²

2023

Law and Human Behavior

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Objectives: Hispanic individuals are a growing proportion of the general and carceral populations in the United States. This study examined the relationship between the type of sentences (prison, jail/probation) given to White, non-Hispanic individuals and to similarly situated individuals who were perceived to be Hispanic (any race) or perceived to be White but, based on validated estimates, self-identified as Hispanic. Hypotheses: Psychological theory indicates that, for group-based stereotypes and attitudes to impact decisions, decisionmakers must first identify and categorize target individuals as members of the relevant group. Following this theory, we predicted that individuals perceived by members of the criminal justice system to be Hispanic will be more likely to be sentenced to prison than similarly situated individuals perceived to be White. However, sentences of individuals predicted to have been misperceived as White but to self-identify as Hispanic will not differ from those of individuals accurately perceived as White. Method: We analyzed official state records of more than 220,000 unique sentencing decisions for nearly 200,000 individuals under state correctional supervision between 2005 and 2018, including demographic characteristics, statutory crime-seriousness and criminal-history scores from state sentencing guidelines, and sentencing outcomes. Results: Even after controlling for crime severity and criminal history, we found that individuals who were labeled as Hispanic in criminal justice records were nearly twice as likely to be sentenced to prison as those who were labeled as White (odds ratio [OR] = 1.95, 95% confidence interval [CI] [1.86, 2.04]). By comparison, individuals who were labeled in criminal justice records as White but, on the basis of validated estimates, were predicted to self-identify as Hispanic had the same likelihood of being sentenced to prison as individuals who were accurately perceived to be White (OR = 1.01, 95% CI [0.94, 1.07]). Conclusions: Results suggest that ethnic stereotypes or attitudes regarding Hispanic individuals may negatively impact criminal sentencing decisions regarding people perceived as Hispanic by actors in the legal system. Public Significance StatementThe results of this study suggest that judges may be substantially more likely to sentence a person to prison rather than to jail and/or probation if they believe that the person is Hispanic as opposed to White, even in cases where a Hispanic person and a White person committed the same crime and had the same criminal record. The negative impact of perceived ethnicity on sentencing suggests that stereotypes and attitudes regarding Hispanic individuals may increase the severity of sentences, with significant negative consequences for defendants, their families, and their communities.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The eye of the beholder: Increased likelihood of prison sentences for people perceived to have Hispanic ethnicity.

Girvan¹,

Marek²

2023

Law and Human Behavior

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“…Parole authorities have long been known to forge relations with community services to identify and to promote and monitor parolee engagement therein, with the aim of promoting stable community tenure among those they supervise (Burrell, 2005). Indeed, in discussing the benefits of community corrections officers to those they supervise, Taxman and Maass (2016) state that the supervisee "has an advocate or someone they can rely upon for assistance. This relationship can enhance someone's quality of life by giving access to needed services or making available resources that may not be at an individual's disposal " (p. 190).…”

Section: Benefits Of Parole Supervisionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Taxman (2012) has referred to such conditions and requirements as forms of liberty restrictions in that they place demands on a person's physical and financial liberties-they are restrictive" (Taxman & Maass, 2016, p. 191). In addition, for many jurisdictions, these conditions include adherence to parole officer instructions that essentially constitute additional mandates the supervisee must meet (Taxman & Maass, 2016). Such requirements may contribute to perceptions that prison life is easier to comply with than community supervision (Crouch, 1993), and result in the decision to waive parole.…”

Section: Challenges With Parole Supervisionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Waiving of Parole Consideration by Inmates With Mental Illness and Recidivism Outcomes

Matejkowski

Ostermann

2020

Criminal Justice and Behavior

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For many adults leaving prison, parole supervision can provide the support necessary for successful adjustment to community life. Those leaving prison who have a mental illness (MI) may benefit particularly from such services. However, many people who are incarcerated waive their opportunity for parole and choose instead to “max out” their sentences. This study explores whether decision-making and community risk predictors differ between people who are incarcerated with ( n = 1,575) and without ( n = 20,220) MI and who choose to voluntarily max out their sentence (i.e., waive parole), who max out involuntarily through denial of parole, and who are released to parole supervision. We found the presence of an MI was associated with the decision to forgo parole, but not recidivism. Those who maxed out their sentence (regardless of voluntariness of decision) had increased likelihood of recidivating. Implications for parole policy, practice, and research are discussed.

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“…As a recent review noted, "Probation is compatible with restorative justice, rehabilitation, alternatives to incarceration, retribution, and incapacitation. In some jurisdictions, it is viewed as either enforcement (monitoring conditions assigned by the court) or social work (service provisions), or something between" (Taxman & Maass, 2016). Rhine and Taxman (FORTHCOMING) outline five dimensions of international variation in probation, which include this overall mission or vision of probation, together with length of supervision, intensity of control, coerciveness of programming or treatment, and the consequences of violating probation.…”

Section: Us Exceptionalismmentioning

confidence: 99%

Supervision in the Community: Probation and Parole

Phelps¹,

Curry²

2017

Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Criminology and Criminal Justice

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Over the past half-century, the number of adults under criminal justice supervision increased precipitously in some Western countries, with carceral control in the United States reaching an unprecedented scale. While much of the scholarly attention has been focused on the development of mass incarceration, new research focuses on the parallel expansion of mass probation and, more broadly, mass supervision. In the United States, the number of adults on probation and parole supervision increased from one million in 1980 to a peak of nearly 5.1 million in 2007, more than double the number of inmates in local, state, and federal jails and prisons. Estimates from Europe in the late 2000s suggest that there were approximately 3.5 million on community sanctions, compared to 2 million incarcerated. Individuals on these sanctions serve out their initial sentences (or remaining time after release from jail or prison) while residing in the community under the supervision of a probation or parole officer. As scholarship increasingly focuses on the expansion of community supervision, we are learning more about this form of punishment. Probationers and parolees are subject to a variety of conditions, including reporting regularly to their supervising officers, finding and maintaining employment, avoiding drug use and re-arrest, participating in therapeutic programs, and paying fines and fees. Failure to comply with the demands of supervision may result in variety of penalties, up to a return to custody for the entire length of the suspended prison sentence. Thus, while probation and parole are often framed as acts of leniency—allowing individuals to avoid incarceration and/or exit early—they can be experienced as quite punitive. In other words, the official discourses and everyday practices of supervision blend both punitive and rehabilitative elements. The composition of this blend varies significantly across countries, states, local departments, individual officers, and the officer-supervisee relationship. This variation has produced a kaleidoscope of different practices, all under the banner of community supervision.

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What Are the Costs and Benefits of Probation?

Cited by 8 publications

References 7 publications

The eye of the beholder: Increased likelihood of prison sentences for people perceived to have Hispanic ethnicity.

The eye of the beholder: Increased likelihood of prison sentences for people perceived to have Hispanic ethnicity.

The Waiving of Parole Consideration by Inmates With Mental Illness and Recidivism Outcomes

Supervision in the Community: Probation and Parole

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