Lisa Pelosi: The biggest misconception about someone wanting to be on probation is that they genuinely do not understand the serious commitment that they’re making and that if they are not successful, they have a very good chance that they will go to state prison. They think that they dodged a bullet by not going to jail and they think that probation is a bit of a joke and its easy. Probation is not easy; it is a very big commitment. That’s probably the biggest misconception.
Clients Mistakenly Believe that Probation Is Easy and Neglect the Overwhelming Commitments Involved
When clients really push me to try to get them probation and as an attorney I don’t want my clients to go to jail but I also don’t want someone to be setup for failure. If someone has a very serious drug problem, its almost guaranteed that they will not be able to abide by what probation is requesting because part of probation is often drug testing. If someone had tried for years to break their drug habit, the odds are that they are not going to stop using drugs when they are on probation. That’s always a situation whereby a client could violate probation.
The Effect of Probation on an Individual’s Driving License in New York
Interviewer: What effect does this probation have on someone’s driver’s license?
Lisa Pelosi: With some charges, the person loses their right to drive for a period of time. So depending upon what the offenses that may or may not be a part of probation, it really depends on the case.
A Person May Move to Another State in Pursuit of Livelihood While on Probation
Interviewer: What if I need to move for work during my probation?
Lisa Pelosi: if you live in State A and need to move to State B, we can go in front of the judge, talk to the department of probation and usually we can get probation transferred to another state where you will be living.
Travelling Between States Is Decided Upon by the Judge and the Probation Officer
Interviewer: Can I travel out of state while on probation?
Lisa Pelosi: It depends upon what the court and the probation officer decides. Usually you would have to let the probation officer know and in some cases or your attorney would have to get permission from the court for you to travel. Sometimes a probation officer does not allow travel and my clients will come to me and go in front of the judge and usually we can enable them to travel.
The Impact of Employment Being a Condition of Probation in New York
Interviewer: Can you work while on probation? What would happen if I got terminated or quit that job? Could that mean that I would get in trouble with the probation officer?
Lisa Pelosi: Yes, probation is definitely looking for you to work and if you’re working and doing well, I think the probation officer will be very disappointed although probably not grounds for terminating you if you quit the job. You would have to have a really good reason to explain to the probation officer why you would want to quit the job and they would definitely encourage you to start looking very quickly for another job because part of probation is to mainstream people back into society and to have them live by a law abiding life.
Legitimate Employment Keeps a Person in Check and Discourages Criminal Activities
Working is just essential to
- Being able to support yourself, support your family and not turning to your criminal activity in order to get funds to your family
- To give you structure and keep you busy.
If someone is working 8- 10 hours a day and doing legitimate work, it’s clear that they are not going to be committing crimes and not going to be hanging around people who might tempt them to do things that they should not do in general but definitely should not do while they are on probation.
