Every crime in California is defined by a specific code section. Our attorneys explain the law, penalties and best defense strategies for every major crime in California.
Crimes by Code
Every crime in California is defined by a specific code section. Our attorneys explain the law, penalties and best defense strategies for every major crime in California.
California DUI
DUI arrests don't always lead to convictions in court. Police officer mistakes, faulty breathalyzers and crime lab errors may get your charges reduced or dismissed. Visit our California DUI page to learn more.
Post Conviction
A criminal record can affect job, immigration, licensing and even housing opportunities. In this section, we offer solutions for clearing up your prior record.
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Maybe you were arrested for DUI. One of the arresting officers made a comment that you may get probation. Isn’t probation the same as parole? If not, how do they differ?
Probation and parole refer to two separate concepts in the U.S. justice system. Probation is part of your sentencing that works to either reduce or eliminate your jail or prison time. While on probation, you are released into the community under the supervision of the court or a probation officer.
By contrast, parole occurs after you have served, not all, but a significant portion of your jail or state prison sentence. It allows you to serve the remainder of your confinement time outside of custody under the supervision of a parole officer.
With both probation and parole, you must adhere to certain terms and conditions regarding your behavior and conduct, such as agreeing to:
Probation refers to a type of criminal sentence imposed by the court where you are released into the community in lieu of spending time in jail or prison.1
While on probation, you are supervised by the court or a probation officer.
You must also adhere to certain terms and conditions of probation throughout your entire probationary period. Some common conditions include:
Note that you are not entitled to probation. Rather, if awarded by a judge, it is considered an act of grace by the court system.2
Probation is available in both misdemeanor and felony cases.
Parole refers to the conditional release from prison or jail where you serve the remainder of your confinement time in the community. Parolees are released after serving a large portion of their sentences.3
Parole is a “conditional release” because, as with probation, you must follow certain conditions of parole, like:
Parole is typically granted by a board of parole. Parolees are supervised by a parole officer during the term of their parole.4
Parole is usually awarded in felony cases after you serve most of your state prison sentence.
As with probation, you do not have a right to parole. It is given as an act of leniency.
In deciding on whether to grant probation, a court will consider:
A parole board will usually consider the following when deciding on whether to grant you early release from your jail time or prison time:
The criminal laws of most states say that you commit a probation violation if you break one of your probation terms (for example, by failing a drug test).7
In these cases, you usually attend a probation violation hearing.
If, in the course of this hearing, a judge finds that you did in fact violate probation, the judge can either:
As with probation, a parole violation occurs if you break one of the conditions of your parole.
If so, you will usually appear before a parole board or judge at a parole hearing.
If the hearing shows that you did violate parole, you could either be:
Note that if your parole is revoked because you committed a new offense, you could face new criminal charges. If convicted, you could receive a prison or jail sentence for the new crime.
“Life without parole” is a prison sentence in criminal cases where you are placed in state prison for the rest of your life without the possibility of parole.
Short of the death penalty, life without parole is considered the most severe sentence and is reserved for only the harshest of crimes, such as:
Yes. You should seek legal advice from a criminal defense lawyer or law firm/law office for issues concerning probation or parole.
A defense attorney can help by:
In our legal experiences, offenders are more likely to obtain probation and parole when represented by a skilled defense lawyer.
Note that if you cannot afford a private defense attorney, you can contact a local public defender’s office for help.
A former Los Angeles prosecutor, attorney Neil Shouse graduated with honors from UC Berkeley and Harvard Law School (and completed additional graduate studies at MIT). He has been featured on CNN, Good Morning America, Dr Phil, The Today Show and Court TV. Mr Shouse has been recognized by the National Trial Lawyers as one of the Top 100 Criminal and Top 100 Civil Attorneys.