C J433 Probation and Parole

You are a probation officer who has been directed to prepare a presentence investigation (PSI) report. Remember, you are providing the judge with a complete picture of this individual offender and what may have caused them to break the law.

You also want to tell the judge about the current criminal offense, so you need to ask the offender about the specifics of the incident. The judge is relying on the information you provide in the final report to determine sentencing and rehabilitative measures. It is up to you to ask the right questions and to elicit responses that provide an accurate depiction of the offender, how much of a threat the offender poses to society, and how the offender can best be rehabilitated or treated.

Resource: Download the Unit 2 Assignment template.

Prepare a presentence investigation (PSI) report guide in questionnaire format for offender interviews by completing the following:

Develop a list of questions (at least five per category) that you would ask an offender if you were required by a criminal court to write a presentence investigation report. Consider the following areas of interest regarding the offender:

• Family life
• Education
• Work experience
• Nature of the offense
• Previous criminal history
• Previous incarcerations
• Medical conditions
• Psychiatric treatments and/or medications
• Counseling
• Prior institutionalizations (incarcerations)

Remember that you are providing the judge with a complete picture of who this individual offender is and what may have caused them to break the law. You also want to tell the judge about the current criminal offense, so you need to ask about the specifics of the incident. The judge is relying on the information you provide in the final report to determine sentencing and rehabilitative measures. It is up to you to ask the right questions and to elicit responses that provide an accurate depiction of the offender, how much the offender poses a threat to society, and how the offender can best be rehabilitated or treated.

Include the following as a subset of each area of interest:

• A summary under each area of interest stating why the questions placed there are relevant and important to the final outcome of the report.
• Include a discussion of how at least six of the 10 elements express culture to give an overall picture of the criminal, since culture informs beliefs of right and wrong.
• What are the cultural expectations for behavior? How are they expressed?

Conclude the report with a listing, and brief description, of the types of documents you will need to review in order to verify the information gathered through the questionnaire.

This report should include a minimum of 2–3 pages besides the completed template.

Note: This assignment requires outside research. Use at least two credible sources beyond the text material and discuss how you evaluated the credibility of the resources used. You may consult the Library, the internet, other course material, and any other outside resources in supporting your task, using proper citations and references in APA formatting and citation style.