Palm Beach County Felony Mobile Probation Unit

About the Program

Category: Criminal Justice and Public Safety (Best in Category)

Year: 2023

Palm Beach County, through its Criminal Justice Commission, in partnership with the Florida Department of Corrections has implemented an innovative first-of-its-kind Felony Mobile Probation Unit as an alternative solution to reduce the number of probation violations in Palm Beach County and to assist probationers find employment in one visit. Violations of probation were among the top charge for felony jail bookings in the County’s jails coupled with the lack of transportation and employment were the major drivers of these probation violations. The Felony Mobile Probation Unit is a proactive public safety and criminal justice pilot initiative to reduce recidivism, probation violations, local jail overcrowding, and to support local reentry efforts. As a result, there has been a 27% reduction in violations since its launch in January 2023 and a significant decrease of 32% in the number of violations for Black probationers. In addition, the Pahokee, one of the County’s rural and impoverished communities, and Riviera Beach, a municipality with a large Black population, have shown the highest level of participation. It is expected that a larger reduction of probation violations will be evident over time through increased marketing and expanding services to additional locations throughout Palm Beach County.