What Happens if You Violate Probation?

Many people are given probation as an alternative to imprisonment upon a conviction or as a means of leaving prison early before a sentence is fully served.

But such probation comes with conditions, and those conditions are crucial. Violating them can end the relative freedom of probation and send someone back to prison. So even if you’ve received probation, returning to prison is a very real possibility if you violate the probation’s terms.

Glitter returns to prison following probation

Take the case of former English pop star and convicted child molester Gary Glitter, who recently returned to prison after he allegedly violated the terms of his probation.

The ’70s glam rocker, who was convicted in 2015 of multiple sex crimes against 3 underage girls, was serving a 16-year sentence for sexually abusing them in the 1970s. According to People magazine, Glitter, 78, had served half of that sentence at a prison in England when he was released on probation in February of 2023.

His release came with conditions, including that Glitter, a registered sex offender, would be closely monitored by probation officers and police.

Such monitoring reportedly determined that a photo was found showing him using a smartphone and asking how to access the “dark web.” Days later, Glitter—whose real name is Paul Gadd—was taken back into custody to resume serving his sentence.

“Sex offenders like Paul Gadd are closely monitored by the police and Probation Service and face some of the strictest license conditions, including being fitted with a GPS tag,” the Ministry of Justice said in a statement. “If the offender breaches these conditions at any point, they can go back behind bars.”

For his 16-year prison sentence, Glitter had been convicted of the following:

• 1 count of attempted rape
• 4 counts of indecent assault
• 1 count of sexual intercourse with a girl under the age of 12

Those crimes reportedly occurred in the 1970s when he reportedly attacked 2 girls, who were then 12 and 13 years old, in his dressing room and, according to The Guardian, also attempted to rape a third victim.

Those allegations were made 40 years later when Glitter became the first person to be arrested under Operation Yewtree, an investigation launched by police in England.

Now that he’s been returned to custody for violating the terms of his probation, Glitter next faces a hearing before a parole board to determine how long he must remain in prison.

Glitter was previously convicted and imprisoned for possession of child pornography, then released after serving a sentence.

With 20 million record sales, Glitter is perhaps best known for his song Rock and Roll, Part 2, which is often played at sporting events.

What about Texas laws on violating probation?

Each state has its own laws pertaining to probation, bond, bail and violating the conditions of probation.

Texas laws on probation refer instead to “community supervision,” though that amounts to the same thing as what is commonly called probation in other states.

Whether a defendant in a criminal case is granted probation as an alternative to prison upon conviction or is released later from prison under community supervision depends on the individual circumstances of the case, including the nature of the crime and whether or not they’re a first-time offender.

If some type of release is granted, that can take several different forms, including:

• Regular misdemeanor probation
• Misdemeanor deferred adjudication probation
• Regular felony probation
• Felony deferred adjudication probation
• Community service deferred adjudication probation
• Conditional discharge

According to Texas’s laws on community supervision, or probation, the maximum period of community supervision in a misdemeanor case is 2 years, though a judge may elect to extend that period.

As for a felony case, the minimum period of community supervision is the same as the minimum term of imprisonment that applies to the offense, while the maximum period of community supervision is 10 years for a felony other than a 3rd-degree felony and 5 years for some 3rd-degree felonies.

Deferred adjudication is a plea deal for probation

Now you may be asking, What is deferred adjudication?

Whether for a misdemeanor or a felony crime, deferred adjudication is a form of a plea deal that can be arranged in court while a defendant faces a charge and a trial.

The defendant can avoid that trial by entering a plea of “guilty” or “no contest” to a charge and, in exchange, be granted the relative freedom of probation under the terms of such deferred adjudication.

When that occurs, the judge technically doesn’t find the defendant guilty but, rather, defers such a finding while providing the defendant with an alternative course of action in the form of probation.

Under that alternative, known in Texas as community supervision, a defendant may also agree to attend educational programs or perform various types of community service during the period of supervision.

When the defendant has abided by the terms of the deferred adjudication agreement, the court will dismiss their case, and the defendant will not be considered to have been guilty, even though they pleaded guilty as part of a deal to avoid prison and gain probation or community supervision.

As for the charge, it remains on the defendant’s record—but without a conviction since a verdict was never rendered.

But even the charge can be eliminated at a later date thanks to a process known as expunction or expungement. A skilled criminal defense lawyer can handle that request and seek to wipe the record clean of a criminal charge.

Key differences between probation and parole violations

• Authority: Probation violations are addressed by the court that granted probation, while parole violations are handled by the Parole Board through administrative hearings.
• Legal Processes: Probation violation proceedings occur in court and may allow for bond, whereas parole violations involving blue warrants do not typically permit bond and involve administrative hearings.
• Outcomes: Both can result in incarceration, but parole revocation often means returning to prison to serve out the original sentence.

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