thebeckster1202
Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? PA. My son was placed into a program through the juvenile court that consisted of 90 days in a placement and 90 days at home with daily court supervision. After 83 days (during which time I had weekly contact with the "school" and both me and my son and were told that he was doing what he was supposed to) his probation officer said that he would not be released for another 30 to 45 days. We have not been brought back to court, as there have been no behavioral issues, only that he "kept to himself." This extention however came after I contacted the placement officer (different from the probation officer, we met with her before going to court) from the juvenile probation office to ask how the discharge was handled (do we go back to court or do we pick him up at the school) because I had made several attempts to contact his assigned probation officer who never returned my calls for a period exceeding 3 weeks. Apparently the placement officer that I called reported the fact that the probation officer hadn't conacted me for such a long priod of time (not my intent or request, I just wanted to know what to do). Now his probation officer has threatened to confine him for a "full program" (9 - 12 months) because he didn't take part in sports or technical programs that are offered at the school. We find this confusing because we were told by the admissions person that the students on the 90/90 program were not eligible to participate in sports or tech programs. My son has acheived and maintained the status that he/we were told he must complete in order to be released. In addition to gaining his status, he had a broken finger so he would not have been able to participate in sports for 8 of the weeks that he was there.
I/we do not deny that he committed a crime and should have been punished, and still has ammends to make (restitution/community service) as well as the punishments that he will have to endure from us, but to keep him in confinement for not speaking up or as the counsiler at the school said "he's doing well, he keeps to himself and does his work" (which I was told weekly) I feel to be unfair.
When I did speak to the assigned PO she told me that this was her first case that was sentenced to this program and she didn't exactly know what was going on and would ask her supervisor and call me back "tomorrow" (that was the first week in August, no call. I left weekly messages and got no call till I called the placement officer to ask her what the process was, and amazingly the assigned PO still didn't call, I just happened to catch her in office last week 9/9). I feel as though she got upset with me for calling and is now taking it out on my son.
Did he makes some dumb ass choices that landed him there, YES, should he be punished, YES, but if he has done what the program required (as reported to me by the school ) and has not gotten into any trouble there, has requested and been denied participation in these other programs (he asked if he could do community service and a trade program, but was told that kids on his program weren't permitted to participate) how can he now be told that he must do these in order to come home by his PO. Additionally, the school gave him his discharge physical (although the PO doesn't know this, and I now have the paper) last week.
My question is, do I have the right to request a review of his case by another party (such as a supervisor) from the juvenile probation office, can I request a hearing with the judge who sentenced him to this program and does a probation officer have the authority to extend a confinment without just cause and bringing the case back to court?
I/we do not deny that he committed a crime and should have been punished, and still has ammends to make (restitution/community service) as well as the punishments that he will have to endure from us, but to keep him in confinement for not speaking up or as the counsiler at the school said "he's doing well, he keeps to himself and does his work" (which I was told weekly) I feel to be unfair.
When I did speak to the assigned PO she told me that this was her first case that was sentenced to this program and she didn't exactly know what was going on and would ask her supervisor and call me back "tomorrow" (that was the first week in August, no call. I left weekly messages and got no call till I called the placement officer to ask her what the process was, and amazingly the assigned PO still didn't call, I just happened to catch her in office last week 9/9). I feel as though she got upset with me for calling and is now taking it out on my son.
Did he makes some dumb ass choices that landed him there, YES, should he be punished, YES, but if he has done what the program required (as reported to me by the school ) and has not gotten into any trouble there, has requested and been denied participation in these other programs (he asked if he could do community service and a trade program, but was told that kids on his program weren't permitted to participate) how can he now be told that he must do these in order to come home by his PO. Additionally, the school gave him his discharge physical (although the PO doesn't know this, and I now have the paper) last week.
My question is, do I have the right to request a review of his case by another party (such as a supervisor) from the juvenile probation office, can I request a hearing with the judge who sentenced him to this program and does a probation officer have the authority to extend a confinment without just cause and bringing the case back to court?
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