Probation in the United States

Abstract

Probation officers supervise two-thirds of all correctional clientele in the United States. But despite the unprecedented growth in probation populations over the past decade, probation budgets have not grown. The result is that U. S. probation services are underfunded relative to prisons and serious felons often go unsupervised, encouraging offender recidivism and reinforcing the public's view that probation is too lenient and lacking in credibility. Yet, there is much unrealized potential in probation. Recent research shows that probation programs, if properly designed and implemented, can reduce recidivism and drug use. Moreover, certain probation programs are judged by offenders to be more punitive than short prison terms, and the public seems increasingly willing to support intermediate sanctions for nonviolent offenders. Experimentation and evaluation are needed to determine whether adequately funded probation systems can protect society and rehabilitate offenders.