VIOLATING YOUR PROBATION CAN LAND YOU IN JAIL OR PRISON FOR THE REMAINDER OF YOUR SENTENCE
If you are currently on felony or misdemeanor probation, you can violate that probation by committing a new offense or by committing technical violations. Technical violations include not reporting on time, failing to attend required classes, or falling behind on paying your fines and fees. In Georgia, you can be revoked up to two years in confinement for technical violations alone. You can also be held in confinement, without bail, under a probation warrant until the State can hold a probation revocation hearing. Sometimes, that can take weeks or months.
In a trial, the burden of proof on the State is to prove their case Beyond a Reasonable Doubt. However, in a probation revocation hearing, the burden of proof is By a Preponderance of the Evidence. This is a much lower standard. Basically, it means if the State can convince the Judge that “more likely than not” you committed a new offense or any technical violations, then you can be revoked.
That is why you need an experienced attorney working for you at your probation revocation hearing. An experienced attorney can gather information from the arresting agency and the probation officer to work out a resolution that may greatly reduce, or even eliminate, jail time. An experienced attorney can also assist successful probationers in possibly getting their sentence modified or reduced.
If you have been charged with violating your probation, contact Michael Fulcher today.