Kaufman County Probation- Stupid Rules

Probation 101
Despite the best efforts of defense counsel the vast majority of criminal cases end up with a plea bargain. In Kaufman County the vast majority of plea bargains involve probation. In general, compliance with probation terms means a defendant can avoid jail time.

Here is page 1 of an Order Imposing Conditions of Community Supervision for Kaufman District Courts. Let’s take a closer look at what can send probationers to jail. (Note- Probation and Community Supervision are the same thing).

<!––>

First their are the obvious rules 1,2,6, 8,13 etc. Report to probation, don’t use drugs or commit any more crimes, take drug tests.

Then they are the “give us our money” rules-14, 15, 16, 17. Nothing raises revenue for the government like the threat of incarceration.

Now for the stupid rules
Rule 3- “Avoid persons and place of disreputable or harmful character including… any person convicted person convicted of a crime or on community supervision.” What makes a person disreputable? How does a place have “harmful character?”

Besides being vague this rule is a logistical impossibility. Texas has more probationers than any other state, over 420,000. Who does not have at least one friend, family member, or co worker who was ever convicted of any criminal offense? Complying with this rule would be a Sisyphean challenge and make George W. Bush off limits to probationers.

Rule 5- Don’t gamble, buy lottery tickets, or play “any game of chance” ????? This stupid rule is so broad it would seem to cover the McDonald’s Monopoly game and your office March Madness bracket. Is the road to criminal recidivism paved with scratch off tickets? Rule 11- Stay in Kaufman County, counties that touch Kaufman county (or the county you live in, and counties that touch that county.) Probationers are not nuclear waste. They have jobs, families, and responsibilities that require travel.

Stupid Rules in Action
Let’s pretend that all probation rules were enforced with equal vigor. Joe Defendant is on probation in Kaufman County for marijuana possession. Joe lives in Kaufman and works in Frisco. According to rule 11 Joe is risking jail by going to work (Collin County doesn’t touch Kaufman). However, rule 9 requires Joe to maintain employment. Joe quits and gets a new job at Fridays. However, rule 4 prohibits Joe from “going places where alcoholic beverages are sold, served, or consumed.” So Joe quits again and gets a job at Radio Shack. Joe learns that his new boss at Radio Shack has a DWI from 1982. Joe, wary of stupid rule 4 quits and looks for work again. Being out of work, Joe is behind on his payments to probation. Desperate, Joe decides to buy one lottery ticket and wins a million dollars!!! He pays off his probation fees and works to start a new life. First, however Joe’s probation is revoked for gambling, going to a bar (Friday’s), and hanging out with criminals (boss), and he serves 90 days in jail.

Reality of Stupid Rules
These stupid probation rules are binding but not always vigorously enforced. Most probation revocations I see are for committing a new crime, or for drug use. Rules that do not promote public safety or should be scrapped. Just because we can make probationers do something does not mean that we should.

<img src="http://www.blogge says:

February 19, 2008 at 4:44 pm

This post has been removed by the author.

<img src="http://www.blogger.c says:

February 19, 2008 at 4:46 pm

Because of my whole DWI debacle I got put into the Collin County probation system, and it was subsequently transferred to Dallas (no idea why).Now that my appeal has been filed and I’m no longer on probation, I get no less than 3 threatening calls a week from either a Dallas or Collin County supervisory officer who refuses to listen to me, refuses to let me talk, and basically just tries to threaten me with jail time if I don’t “turn myself in now”, no doubt so that he can slap cuffs on me and figure out that I’m not supposed to be there a week after I’ve been sitting in jail.I just yell at them right back until they bother themselves to check the computer and find out that I, in fact, am not on probation.The system rules, lemme tell ya.

February 19, 2008 at 6:19 pm

Probation is a pretty ridiculous system, and I think you’ve done a great job of illustrating it. The whole system seems to be set up to fair, ultimately resulting in the state spending more money to detain, prosecute, and imprison someone. I’d actually be curious to know whether it costs more for a county to put someone in jail or 30 days, or put them on probation for, say a year or two.

February 19, 2008 at 6:20 pm

^^^and that should be “fail”, not “fair”.

Paul says:

November 14, 2008 at 9:04 am

i have spent alot of time on probation for all minor offenses. Politicians always talk about how over crowded our jails are, but everything i have witnessed with being on probation, it seems to me that they do almost anything to put you in jail or at least keep you on probation for as long as possible. Its BS! once you go to court pay for everything you should be let go, and booted out of the judicial system. Of course if you are on felony probation or something i dont feel this is the case. But any kind of misdemeanor needs to be as easy as Guilty, heres my money now let me live my life. Instead of showing up here every month to hand you 50$ and tell you that i am still currently employed and havent gotten arrested in the last 30 days.

David C. Johnson says:

December 22, 2009 at 10:58 pm

I’m a probationer in Dallas County. My file has gone to the court for review. I assert,the file is tainted and the proof and evidence is in the file. how can I make sure the court knows that are reviewing a tainted file.

December 22, 2009 at 10:59 pm