Imagine you are a probation officer and you have a client named Tommy Smith, age 21. Tommy has a prior conviction for marijuana possession for which he completed 6 months of probation. That conviction was then expunged. Following that term of probation, Tommy was charged with breaking and entering, a lower degree of burglary in your state. The judge was somewhat exasperated but the expungement of the marijuana conviction meant that the breaking and entering was officially a first offense. So the judge again suspends Tommy’s sentence and orders him to serve 4 years of probation.
A pre-sentence investigation tells you Tommy dropped out of high school when he was 15 to begin working to help his single mother. His employer states he is a good worker. He had no prior juvenile record. Now at 21 both of his younger brothers also work to help support their mother. It is apparent he has positive influences in the home, but it is also obvious he runs with the wrong crowd. His peers are a negative influence to say the least.
After noting a huge rise in rail cargo theft, local police have investigated gangs looting railway boxcars. Despite complying with all the conditions the court requires of his probation, Tommy is now one of several targets of this investigation. He is being charged with conspiracy and burglary of a railway freight car.
Tommy has been diverted from the criminal justice system two times already. Should there be a limit to the number of diversions? Would sentencing Tommy to jail or prison better deter criminal activity in the future? Are their community resources that could help Tommy learn to reject associations that lead to criminal behavior?
