COMMUNITY SUPERVISION and CORRECTIONS DEPARTMENT of TARRANT COUNTY, TEXAS

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1 COMMUNITY SUPERVISION and CORRECTIONS DEPARTMENT of TARRANT COUNTY, TEXAS PROBATIONER HANDBOOK

2 Our Vision We envision a progressive and innovative organization; where people are encouraged to challenge themselves to make a positive difference in the lives of others. Our Mission Tarrant County CSCD is a diverse group of professionals. We are united by a shared system of core values, dedicated to enhancing community safety by providing resources, services and sanctions which promote positive behavioral changes in offenders. Our Core Values We pride ourselves on our INTEGRITY and the RESPECT we have for each and every TEAM MEMBER. We hold ourselves ACCOUNTABLE and remain committed toward achieving HIGH STANDARDS through EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION. Notice: Dates, locations, and schedules subject to change. Feel free to inquire about updates. Revised 08/23/12 CSC 281 GPC-1529

3 Community Supervision and Corrections Department of Tarrant County, Texas Leighton Iles - Director Jim Sinclair - Assistant Director **********

4 COMMUNITY SUPERVISION AND CORRECTIONS DEPARTMENT OF TARRANT COUNTY Central Office, Criminal Justice Building Miller Complex 200 West Belknap 3210 Miller Avenue Fort Worth, Texas Fort Worth, Texas (817) (817) Administrative Offices Poly/High Risk FSU Felony/Misdemeanor Courts South Central FSU Electronic Monitoring (ELM) Eastside FSU Bond Supervision Caseloads Sex Offender Caseloads Treatment Alternatives to Mentally Impaired Incarceration (TAIP) Caseloads Victim Services CCF Aftercare Caseloads SAFPF - Substance Abuse Felony SAFPF Aftercare Caseloads Punishment Facility Felony Alcohol Intervention Program (FAIP) Northeast Field Service Unit Southwest Field Service Unit 201 East Plaza Blvd 3829 Alta Mesa Blvd Hurst, Texas Fort Worth, Texas (817) (817) Northwest Field Service Unit Intensive Day Treatment (IDT) Program 3800 Adam Grubb Road Tarrant County Resource Connection Fort Worth, Texas Circle Drive (817) Fort Worth, Texas (817) IDT Aftercare Caseloads Southeast Field Service Unit 724B East Border Street Arlington, Texas (817) Pre/Post Sentence Investigation/Assessment Unit 300 West Belknap 1st Floor Fort Worth, Texas (817) South Field Service Unit 651 Justice Lane Mansfield, Texas (817) ALL MAIL SHOULD BE ADDRESSED TO THE CSCD CENTRAL OFFICE AND WILL BE DELIVERED TO THE APPROPRIATE OFFICE: Tarrant County CSCD 200 West Belknap St. Fort Worth, Texas

5 FOREWORD This manual was written to provide information to persons placed on community supervision for criminal offenses in Tarrant County, Texas. The information in this handbook answers some questions about community supervision and the things you may need to do to successfully complete community supervision. Behaviors that could keep you from successfully completing your community supervision are also discussed. The conditions (rules) of community supervision discussed in this handbook are general and may not be the same as the conditions on your court order. Any questions about your community supervision and what is required of you should be discussed with your supervision officer.

6 I. WHAT IS COMMUNITY SUPERVISION? Community supervision involves suspending your sentence and allowing you to continue to live and work in the community. If you fail to follow the conditions of community supervision, it may be revoked and your right to remain in the community may be taken away from you. You can be sent to the county jail, to a State Jail, or to prison, regardless of how much of your sentence you have already served. You will be assigned to a supervision officer who will offer you tools and resources to help you successfully complete your community supervision and remain a law-abiding citizen. II. The "conditions of community supervision" are very important. These are the rules which you agreed to live by when the judge allowed you to be on community supervision. If you have any questions about the conditions of community supervision, talk to your supervision officer. TYPES OF COMMUNITY SUPERVISION: There are two types of community supervision - Adjudicated Community Supervision or Deferred Adjudication Community Supervision. Adjudicated Community Supervision - may be given for either a felony or misdemeanor offense. If you received adjudicated community supervision you were convicted of the offense. Deferred Adjudication Community Supervision - may be given for certain felony or misdemeanor offenses. The important difference between adjudicated community supervision and deferred adjudication community supervision is that in a deferred adjudication, you are placed on community supervision prior to a final conviction. You have not been convicted of a criminal offense even though

7 enough evidence was presented to the judge to convict you. You do have an arrest record and a pending offense. If you violate the conditions of community supervision, you are subject to the full range of punishment for the offense. In other words, you can get the maximum sentence for your offense if your deferred adjudication is revoked, regardless of the length of the original community supervision sentence or the time you have served. III. OWNERSHIP/POSSESSION OF FIREARMS: As a result of being placed on community supervision, your right to purchase, own or possess firearms under federal law may be affected. Further information may be obtained from the local office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, a Division of the U. S. Treasury Department ( ) or from your attorney. IV. CONDITIONS OF COMMUNITY SUPERVISION: The conditions of community supervision are rules set by the court which must be followed in order to successfully complete community supervision. The judge may change the conditions of community supervision whenever necessary. Some of the conditions which may be ordered by the court are discussed briefly in the following pages. The court is not limited to the conditions listed here. Often the judge will add special conditions such as participation in a treatment program, drug screening, or educational program. STANDARD CONDITIONS INCLUDE: a. Commit no offense against the laws of this state or any other state or the United States. You must obey all federal, state, and local laws. b. Avoid injurious or vicious habits and abstain from the illegal use of controlled substances or excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages.

8 The illegal use of any drugs (controlled substances), gambling, and the excessive use of alcohol (or do not consume alcoholic beverages ) are violations of community supervision. c. Avoid persons or places of disreputable or harmful character. Associating with other probationers and persons with criminal records is a violation of community supervision. Although contact on the job, at the community supervision office, and at certain treatment facilities may be unavoidable, voluntary contact is a violation. d. Report to the supervision officer as directed. YOU MUST REPORT EVEN IF YOU ARE NOT ABLE TO MAKE A PAYMENT ON YOUR FEES. If you do not have transportation, please make arrangements so that you can keep your appointment. e. Permit the supervision officer to visit you at your home or elsewhere. You must keep your supervision officer informed of your current address and employment and allow the officer to visit you there. f. Work faithfully at suitable employment. You are expected to work at a legitimate job. You must provide proof of employment and income when your supervision officer asks for it. Referrals to employment agencies are available for those who have trouble finding a job on their own. You may be required to participate in a job assistance program if you are unemployed. g. Remain within the limits of Tarrant County, Texas. You must get written permission from your supervision officer if you need to travel outside of Tarrant County for any reason. Travel outside of the county is a privilege that may or may not be granted.

9 h. Support your dependents. If you are court-ordered to pay child support, you are expected to make your payments as ordered. i. Notify the supervision officer of Tarrant County, Texas, if your address or employment has changed, within five days from the date of the change. All above changes must be reported including the loss of a job. Keep your supervision officer advised, at all times, of your home address and phone number, as well as your work address and phone number. j. Possess no firearms away from your residence. k. Execute a waiver of extradition. If you are arrested in another state and a Motion to Revoke your community supervision has been filed, you may be brought back to Tarrant County for your revocation hearing. l. Pay to and through the Community Supervision and Corrections Department Office of Tarrant County, Texas, the following: 1) Restitution: Money to be paid to the victim of your offense to be used to replace property, repair damages, cover the cost of injuries, or other expenses related to the offense. 2) Supervision Fee: Reduces the cost of community supervision to the taxpayers. 3) Court Cost: Part of the expense of legally processing your case through the courts. 4) Fine: As ordered by the court.

10 5) Attorney Fee: You may be required to pay for the cost of a court-appointed attorney. 6) Other Costs: As ordered by the court. You are expected to pay all fees ordered by the court. In most cases, you pay on a monthly schedule. Failure to pay these fees as ordered is a violation of your community supervision and can result in your community supervision being revoked. Anytime you have a problem making a payment, you need to discuss the situation with your supervision officer and provide him/her with proof of your income and expenses. Budget planning classes, if needed, are offered through the community supervision office. Ask your supervision officer to schedule you for a class if you need assistance. SPECIAL CONDITIONS INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO: m. If your supervision is transferred to another county, you will continue to report to Tarrant County by mail each month. You must comply with the rules and regulations of the other county or state. You must also mail your court ordered fees to Tarrant County, unless waived by the court. n. Complete Community Service Restitution hours as ordered by the court at the rate scheduled by the supervision officer or court, to be completed at an approved agency approved. You must complete your hours in a timely manner as directed by your supervision officer. o. Submit to urine testing for controlled substances and cannabinoids at the direction of the supervision officer and pay for urine testing as required. (Refer to Random Drug Testing Program later in this booklet). p. Complete education programs as directed by the supervision officer. You must provide documentation of completion. You may be

11 required to take educational testing and/or participate in and complete adult education programs. q. Observe a curfew as directed by the supervision officer or the court. When a curfew is set, contacts will be made by supervision officers to make sure you are home during the curfew hours. r. The court may order you not to make contact with a certain person or groups of people, or to not go to a specific place or places. s. Supplemental Conditions as ordered by the court (i.e. counseling, residential programs, surveillance). V. THE ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITY OF THE SUPERVISION OFFICER: Your supervision officer has been assigned to help you to follow the conditions of your community supervision. He/she is available to assist you with any problems and to refer you to community agencies for aid in dealing with your problems. At the same time, the supervision officer is responsible to the court which granted your community supervision and helps protect the community. Talk to your supervision officer about things that concern you. The supervision officer cannot excuse you from any of your conditions of supervision (such as reporting, making payments, completing community service restitution as ordered); only the court has this authority.

12 VI. REFERRALS ARE AVAILABLE TO YOU IN THE FOLLOWING AND OTHER AREAS: Anger control Alcohol abuse Drug abuse Child and family counseling Education and training Employment assistance Emergency financial assistance Health needs (including referral service for HIV-related issues) Rehabilitation Victimization Legal (non-criminal) issues Housing assistance Budgeting/Personal Money Power classes Women's needs Your supervision officer may not know about the problems you are having which will keep him/her from finding ways to help you. Problems in the above areas can keep you from successfully completing community supervision. Do not let embarrassment or pride keep you from discussing any problems you may have with your supervision officer.

13 Random Drug Testing Program You may be ordered to participate in a random drug testing program, which may require you to submit non-dilute, non-adulterated urine, hair, blood, breath, or saliva samples for testing for controlled substances, alcohol, marijuana and synthetic cannabinoids. Your officer will explain the program and your required participation in the program. The drug testing lab locations and times are posted at each CSCD office. Collection hours are subject to change during holidays. A lab tech (or supervision officer) is required to observe the urine leave the body. While this process may be uncomfortable, it is a legal requirement. Your complete cooperation is expected by the court. You will be allowed ONLY TWO ATTEMPTS to provide a sample. If you fail to provide a sample on the first attempt, you will be allowed one more attempt within one (1) hour. If you fail to submit a sample on the second attempt, a Stall Violation Report will be sent to your officer via and you will be instructed to RE-TEST within the next 24 hours. A stall may result in an increased testing frequency, sanctions and/or alternate methods of drug testing such as hair testing. Do NOT drink excessive amounts of fluids in attempt to submit a specimen as this may result in a diluted specimen. Submitting a diluted sample may be considered a failure to comply with your courtordered drug testing conditions. If you submit a diluted sample, you will be instructed to RE-TEST within the next 24 hours. It may also result in an increased testing frequency and/or or alternate methods of drug testing such as hair testing. You may be required to call in to the Random Drug Testing Call Center. If enrolled in this program, you must call the call center each day (Monday through Friday, except holidays). After entering your CID number, you will be given instructions as to whether or not you have been randomly selected to submit to drug testing that day. If selected, you are required to submit a urine sample before close of business that same day. Your officer will give you specifics of this program including call center phone number if you are enrolled in this program. You are required to pay for ALL drug tests including any taken on the day you are placed on community supervision. Pay for the testing with a Money Order made out to CSCD and given to the office cashier. The amount MAY be combined with your monthly probation fees on the same money order. The cashier at the Central Office accepts cash. If you are unable to pay at the time of the collection, the charge will be added to your CSCD fees. Ask your Officer for costs of the different types of drug testing.

14 COUNTY HOLIDAYS The county generally observes and closes all offices on the following holidays: New Years Day (January 1) Memorial Day (May) Martin Luther King (January) Independence Day (July 4) President s Day (February) Labor Day (September) Caesar Chavez Day (March) Thanksgiving Day (November) Good Friday (March or April) Christmas (December) Check for notices at each office for the specific dates. In case of bad weather, such as icy road conditions, the department follows the county decision whether or not offices will open. Listen to the following news channels for information about Tarrant County Offices : KXAS (TV) Channel 5 WBAP (radio) AM 820 KSCS (radio) FM 96.5 KRLD (radio) AM 1080 If you have internet access, you can also check the Tarrant County Home Page at:

15 You MUST bring the following items with you when you report to your supervision officer for your first appointment: Completed Budget Worksheet (Form Included) Driver s license and insurance card Texas ID (if you don t have a driver s license) High school diploma / GED documentation Documentation of any existing medical condition All drug prescriptions Verification of address (e.g., lease, water bill, etc.) Verification of employment (e.g., check stub) Immigration Registration (if applicable) Social Security card Certificates from any program(s) you have already completed Court Costs/Fines Fees Documentation

16 NOTES/COMMENTS