The probation department assumes many roles

The Dover Probation Office merged with the Millbrook office in early 2011. This month, their county director received a state award for the department’s innovative and proactive strategies. So what exactly does a probation office do? After reading the 2009 Probation Department’s Annual Report, it became clear to me that probation today is a lot more than meets the eye.The probation department oversees low-level offenders prior to trial through its Pre-Trial Services Unit. This program is rooted in the 1950’s United States Supreme Court decision Stack vs. Boyle, which found some arrestees could be released on their own recognizance (ROR) or released under supervision (ROS). The county has developed a “continuum of control” so that those defendants deemed eligible for this program are properly accounted for, and risks to the community are slim. The department conducts interviews, verifies supplied information, applies a validated risk tool and screens candidates before qualifying them. Those who fail may then be reviewed for more restrictive programming including electronic home detention. All of these alternatives to incarceration for low-risk offenders help to lower the costs associated with imprisonment. In 2009, out of 2,495 offenders interviewed for pretrial services only 883 were approved.Countywide, on average, there are 34 adults and six juveniles a month on electronic monitoring, meaning a small transmitter is attached to their ankles with a receiver installed in their homes. Probation officers monitor the transmission around-the-clock and respond immediately if the probationer leaves the home. Offenders with substance abuse problems can be steered toward intensive outpatient substance abuse treatment at a Transitional Housing Program operated in conjunction with the county’s Department of Mental Hygiene. There were on average 58 individuals per month in this type of treatment in 2009.A specialized probation unit is assigned to high risk low-level offenders. These segments of the probation population served include the severely and persistently mentally ill, domestic violence offenders and sex offenders. The latter have monitoring devices applied to all computers and electronic devices.About 30 percent of the total adult probation population is driving while intoxicated (DWI)-related offenses. On average the department is servicing between 590 and 610 DWI offenders at any given time. Since 2009 the department also implements the supervision required by the state’s Leandra’s Law — the installation and monitoring of ignition interlock devices.The probation department also assists family court judges in providing alternatives to detention and placement for juveniles and offers a voluntary diversion service to juveniles subject to Persons In Need of Supervision (PINS) or Juvenile Delinquent complaints. The PINS diversion services have lowered PINS placements from 60 in 2002 to only 12 in 2009.Offenders in youth programs are often required to complete community service and take workshops on victim empathy. Probation offers therapy opportunities to families, can assist with mental health screens and assists victims of domestic violence in completing family offense petitions in family court.The department is involved in rehabilitation, too. It runs various help groups including an Anger Management Group, Shoplifter’s Group, Marijuana Group and another that helps unemployed offenders find and keep work. Clearly the department has developed through the years to meet the changing needs of society.Michael Kelsey represents Amenia, Washington, Stanford, Pleasant Valley and Millbrook in the Dutchess County Legislature. Write him at KelseyESQ@yahoo.com.