Wednesday, June 06, 2007

New SA Probation Officer Blog

Say Howdy to the Texas Council on Probation, a new blog by San Antonio probation officer Bryan Shreve, who
has over thirteen years experience in the community corrections field supervising offenders on probation and parole in Florida and supervising offenders in Texas. His vast experience ranges from investigations to supervising a diverse population in pre-trial intervention , youthful offenders, high -risk offenders to include violent and sex offenders, house arrest, and monitoring offenders on GPS.
I can't tell from the site whether the "Council" is a group or just the name of the site, but in any case, welcome to the blogosphere, Bryan.

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Alright Bryan- Way to go!!!
Bryan is helping in Bexar County by bringing in new ideas and getting the officers united and moving forward in a positive manner!

Anonymous said...

Grits - I remember some of your feelings on GPS- I would like to know how Bryan's experiences compare to some of your feelings on GPS?

Gritsforbreakfast said...

Sure. I'm not sure what you remember, but I don't oppose GPS inherently at all and think it's appropriate for some high risk offenders. I just think it's not a substitute for POs or actual oversight, home visits, etc., which should be bigger priorities IMO. And I think there's a risk of creating a false sense of security if it's overrused, since it's not actually a preventive, just an additional data point if something goes wrong. But I'd also like to hear Bryan's views.

Anonymous said...

Think of the expense! Who will monitor this and this is a very stupid idea. What would one do who needs to take a shower, call in and say I need a shower may I take this fool thing off?

Policemen don't do their jobs very well as it is and some are not worth being called policemen. Children should be afraid of some of them.

GPS is a stupid idea and not substitue for a real person. My car has a GPS in it, but that is in case I get lost or need help, not for the police to locate me unless I call them.

Gritsforbreakfast said...

Yup, GPS is no panacea, for sure. It probabaly has a limited role, IMO, but "who will monitor," and what happens when violations are charted, are the two $64 million questions. We'll see what Bryan thinks.

Anonymous said...

probally nothing - look what the judges do when offenders get arrested for new offenses - NOTHING. one judge in bexar county thinks a drug user will slip sixteen times before getting it. my question is what happens durring those 16 times - it only takes one tim for someone to get killed or the actual offender dies from an overdose.

Anonymous said...

Thank you very much Scott for the nice comments and plugging the blog. First the council is still in the making. I came from a similiar council that brought great ideas to our profession and most importantly brought our field together to realize there is a bigger picture besides one department or one policy. The real work is on the front lines of probation, corrections, and law enforcement working as a team of professionals in the positive treatment of offenders and protection of the public. Both treatment and incarceration theories can be practiced and coexist if the right people have the bigger vision. In the months to come, there will be more information and membership applications available for these concerned professionals and citizens. This will bring in fresh ideas to Texas and give others another choice besides Texas Probation Association. Although it may be a great organization, I believe quality training, networking, sharing experiences and ideas can make our communities safer.

About GPS, my experience is working a lot of hours in the field knocking on doors and windows at all hours of the day and night, on call, and in front of the computer monitoring offenders. GPS can only work correctly if officers do random home checks and have immediate arrest authority for violators. These offenders are very dangerous to the public but for some reason or another, the courts allow them to remain in the community (maybe jail/prison space is the reason). Texas needs to implement a "house arrest" type sanction for those on GPS and strictly enforce the rules. It is extremely busy for officers, but if ran correctly, it can be a valuable tool to track offenders. This in turn will be good for the offender who is charged with a crime that he or she may not have committed, and verify with the GPS tracking of where he or she was and what time he or she was in the location. Therefore, this could reduce false arrests of those who are on probation. In addition, victims can be notified via pager or cellular technology of an offender who is approaching his or her area. It works both ways. Technology is out there, but the old ways are still needed to keep the human element in supervision. The costs should be passed on to the offender, and I know how you feel about the offender is overburdended already. I believe accountability is the true rehab tool that trumps most of the feel good programs. Paying for GPS should not be on the burden of the citizens who have been victimized by the offender. That is just my humble opinion.

Keep the faith,
Bryan

Gritsforbreakfast said...

Thank, Bryan - As you know, where you and I may need to have additional discussion is that I think we already have too many costs passed onto the offender, which has reduced victim restitution rates. But other than that I'm not inherently against GPS, still curious about it, really. Best,

Anonymous said...

Old as Moses says: Bexar County CSCD administration was advised of a GPS program funded entirely by the Federal government. There was 5 million dollars available for tracking of Sex Offenders 24/7. Did they even apply for it? Good question! The Gang/Sex/Domestic violence offenders are not being monitored as closely as they should be. CJAD standards are not being followed as officer safety has been in question for over a year! What about the PUBLIC'S safety? When are the Judges going to step up and protect the public who elected them? Will the public remember this come the next election? I hope so, it's a sad day in Bexar County when probationers are running around with little or no supervision!!!!!!!!!

Gritsforbreakfast said...

@ OAM: Just curious - how would GPS help in domestic violence cases? All it does is keep the offender at home, which is where such offenses usually occur.

I'd also add that even if somebody pays for the equipment, GPS isn't free. It just generates data streams that human beings must be employed to monitor, react to, account for error and extenuating circumstance, etc.. So if a CSCD is understaffed, it might not make sense to use GPS more widely since there isn't enough labor to perform the tasks already on POs plates. Just a thought. Best,

Anonymous said...

What is the applicability of GPS in domestic violence cases? Many times the victim separates from the abuser and files for a restraining order. A GPS system that tracks in real time would alert authorities when the offender violates the order to stay a certain yardage away from the victim at all times. On the other hand, if the victim continues to live with the offender, the GPS would-at a minimum-reveal how many hours the offender spent at the bar (instead of the batterer's intervention class) before going home and beating up the victim again.