Probation Order Simulation Exercise
Probation orders:
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cannot remain in force for more than three years;
cannot be made to run consecutive to another order (although orders do run concurrently where the
offender is bound by a number of different orders at the same time); and
end only on the expiry date unless the court revokes or terminates the order early. The court can
also, at any time, decrease the term of probation.
Supervisory Role of a Probation Officer
The supervisory role of a probation officer is to: i) prepare reports for courts and other correctional
decision makers; ii) enforce the probation order; and iii) comprehensively assess offenders, make
effective case management decisions and determine rehabilitative interventions (e.g., referral to internal
or community-based educational, counselling, or treatment programs or services).
Enforcement
Failure to Comply with Probation Without Reasonable Excuse (Breach of Probation)
An offender who is bound by a probation order and who, without reasonable excuse, fails or refuses to
comply with that order is guilty of: i) an offence punishable on summary conviction and has a maximum
penalty not exceeding 18 months in jail and/or a fine not exceeding $2,000; or ii) an indictable offence
and has a maximum penalty of imprisonment not exceeding two years.
Revocation
When a person on probation with a suspended sentence or conditional discharge has been charged and
convicted of a subsequent offence during the term of the order, the Crown Attorney may apply to the
judge to have the order revoked. The court may: i) impose any sentence that may have been imposed
had the passing of sentence not been suspended; or ii) revoke the discharge, convict the probationer on
the original charge, and impose any sentence that could have been imposed had the discharge not been
granted initially.
Conditions of Probation
Reporting to a Probation Officer
 A probation officer only has authority to supervise a person who has been placed on probation with a
reporting condition.
 The frequency and form of reporting may be outlined by the court.
 Where the reporting condition is worded "report as directed" without outlining a reporting schedule, a
probation officer will complete a comprehensive assessment to determine the appropriate intervention
and frequency of reporting based on an analysis of the offender's risk to re-offend and need in areas
linked with criminal conduct. Factors that are considered in determining the type of intervention
include:
o legal requirements and conditions of probation;
o public safety;
o circumstances of offence and risk of re-offending;
o need, motivation and ability to benefit from rehabilitative services; and
o availability of programs and services.
Conditions of probation must:
 detail precisely what conduct or acts are prohibited, avoiding ambiguous, uncertain or contradictory
wording;
 be enforceable; and
 be relevant to offence and rehabilitation, as determined by case law.
Section 732.1 of the Criminal Code
Compulsory Conditions of a Probation Order
(2) The court shall prescribe, as conditions of a probation order, that the offender do all of the following:
(a) keep the peace and be of good behaviour;
(b) appear before the court when required to do so by the court; and
(c) notify the court or the probation officer in advance of any change of name or address, and
promptly notify the court or the probation officer of any change of employment or occupation.
Optional Conditions of a Probation Order
(3) The court may prescribe, as additional conditions of a probation order, that the offender do
one or more of the following:
(a) report to a probation officer
(i) within two working days, or such longer period as the court directs, after the making of
the probation order, and
(ii) thereafter, when required by the probation officer and in the manner directed by the
probation officer;
(b) remain within the jurisdiction of the court unless written permission to go outside that
jurisdiction is obtained from the court or the probation officer;
(c) abstain from
(i) the consumption of alcohol or other intoxicating substances, or
(ii) the consumption of drugs except in accordance with a medical prescription;
(d) abstain from owning, possessing or carrying a weapon;
(e) provide for the support or care of dependants;
(f) perform up to 240 hours of community service over a period not exceeding eighteen months;
(g) if the offender agrees, and subject to the program director’s acceptance of the offender,
participate actively in a treatment program approved by the province;
(g.1) where the lieutenant governor in council of the province in which the probation order
is made has established a program for curative treatment in relation to the consumption
of alcohol or drugs, attend at a treatment facility, designated by the lieutenant governor in
council of the province, for assessment and curative treatment in relation to the
consumption by the offender of alcohol or drugs that is recommended pursuant to the
program;
(g.2) where the lieutenant governor in council of the province in which the probation order
is made has established a program governing the use of an alcohol ignition interlock
device by an offender and if the offender agrees to participate in the program, comply
with the program; and
(h) comply with such other reasonable conditions as the court considers desirable, subject to any
regulations made under subsection 738(2), for protecting society and for facilitating the offender’s
successful reintegration into the community.