If I catch a new charge while on probatio will I violate

You can, it will depend on
1. what the charge is
2. what your PO thinks

3. and if you do get violated, it is up to the judge to decide what the punishment will be,

Of course all this varies from state to state. In the state where I was a PO (MD), you did not violate probation unless you are convicted of a new charge while on probation. New charges can be dropped or the person may be found not guilty. There may be a clause in your probation order that requires you to notify your PO if you get a new charge, you might want to look and see if yours has a requirement. It might also have some wording on whether you violate by getting arrested.

Yes... if u are arrested.. or charged with a crime it will violate your probation.

Hi, trouble21nj!

Yes, it does depend on what the charge is and what your P.O. thinks.

Are there any charges that might potentially happen about which you're particularly concerned, please?

Thanks!

Now wait a minute, folks, I was a PO for 7 years and I can guarantee you that what the PO thinks really has nothing to do with it! The probation order specifically lists what violates the probation and it should clearly state whether a new charge or a new conviction violates. Sure, there is some discretion on things like follow up when a person misses an office visit, some PO's just write the person up, others call or do a home visit to see if the person might have a legitimate excuse. But what actually constitutes a violation of probation has to be spelled out to the person in the probation order and it really doesn't matter what the PO thinks, they have to do their job or get canned!

The reasons for this should be obvious. First of all, the judge is the person who determines what violates the probation, not the PO. The judge lists the conditions so that everyone knows what they are and all the PO has to do is to compare the probationers conduct with the conditions in the probation order. If there is a violation the PO makes a report to the judge and the judge decides what to do about it.

Secondly, we are talking about hauling a person into court with the possibility that they may lose their freedom. If I had to sit there and "think about" whether the person violated or not, they would not get violated. If the violation is not obvious when compared to the conditions on the probation order, it is not a violation.

Again, in my state (MD), a new charge never violated probation unless there was a conviction. I don't know how they handle it in states where an arrest constitutes a violation of probation and the new charges are dropped. If anyone else out there has been a PO besides me, perhaps they can explain it. I had to go to school for two months to learn this stuff and if you haven't been a PO I can't imagine where you're getting this information.