When the Abuser Gets Out of Jail

As part of the criminal justice process, the abuser could end up on either probation or parole. These are similar concepts but come about in different ways.

Probation is monitoring that occurs as part of the initial sentencing process after a guilty plea or conviction. An abuser might be sentenced to probation rather than incarceration or in addition to incarceration. When an abuser is on probation, s/he will be supervised by the probation department in the area where s/he lives. This usually means checking in with an assigned probation officer and following certain conditions of probation.

Parole occurs when an abuser is sentenced to incarceration for committing the crime and then is released from prison early. Most people sentenced to prison do not serve the full sentence. When someone is in prison, there are certain dates scheduled along the way where a person will be eligible for parole. A parole hearing is held, and the parole board decides whether or not the prisoner should be released, based on a variety of factors. The prisoner’s behavior in prison and the severity of crime are a few examples. The victim may be able to testify at the parole hearing and explain to the board why s/he does or does not want the prisoner released. If the parole board decides to release the prisoner, then s/he will be on parole for the duration of his/her sentence. Similar to probation, the abuser will be assigned a parole officer who will keep tabs on the abuser.

As mentioned above, when an abuser is on probation or parole, there are conditions s/he has to follow that allow him/her to stay out of prison or jail. If the abuser violates these conditions, s/he will usually be brought back before the judge who will decide the consequences of the violation. Some common conditions of parole/probation are:

• no use of drugs or alcohol;
• keeping or looking for a job;
• attending drug and alcohol or anger management classes;
• no contact with the victim;
• not spending time with other criminals/felons; and
• other conditions as appropriate.

If the abuser violates one of the terms of his/her parole or probation, you may be able to contact his/her parole or probation officer to report the violation. The officer will then decide whether to arrest the abuser and bring him/her before the judge for further action. However, before contacting the probation or parole officer, please consider your safety. You may want to ask your domestic violence advocate to do this on your behalf, for example.