A study of probation revocations for technical violations in Hays County, Texas, USA

Probation revocations were examined for six months in Hays County, Texas, USA, to determine whether probationers were revoked and sentenced to jail or provided with an alternative sanction. The results indicate that 55 per cent of the revocations result in prison or jail without an intermediate sanction. This outcome is compared to the state-wide revocation percentage and discussed in terms of the goal of Texas Department of Criminal Justice – Community Justice Assistance Division (TDCJ–CJAD) of sanctioning probationers who violate the terms of probation, in lieu of sentencing them to prison. The impact of revocations on criminal justice policy is discussed.