NCJ Number
198988
Journal
Corrections Today Volume: 65 Issue: 1 Dated: February 2003 Pages: 67-69
Date Published
February 2003
Length
3 pages
Annotation
This article addresses the balancing act performed by New Jersey parole officers in negotiating both community safety and integrating parolees back into society.
Abstract
Noting that New Jersey parole officers’ average caseloads have decreased from 85 cases to 45 cases during the past 5 years, the author explains that officers have a wide variety of graduated sanctions at their disposal when parolees go astray. Focusing on electronic monitoring, curfews, day reporting centers, special conditions, and intense supervision caseloads, the author contends that the New Jersey Division of Parole functions to help officers keep parolees within their communities. Discussing recent organizational changes within the New Jersey Division of Parole, the author states whether organizational changes should and did occur from the top down or the bottom up, concluding that any organizational change really needs to come from both directions for staff members to feel empowered to better do their jobs. For organizational changes to occur in the context of parole departments, changes need to be mandated from above and below with high levels of organizational trust in place. Furthermore, because they are the most affected party at times of organizational change, parolees need to be informed of what is expected of them and what their obligations are at times of change.