N.Y. Executive Law § 257: Probation personnel; qualifications and duties

§ 257. Probation personnel; qualifications and duties. 1. Except as

may be otherwise specified in other provisions of law, all salaried

probation officers and their supervisors, including the director, of

every probation department, agency or service maintained by any county

or city shall be in the competitive class of the civil service. No

person shall be eligible for appointment as a probation officer or to a

position that involves the duty of supervising a probation officer, who

is under twenty-one years of age, or who has not had a high school

education, or equivalent education, or who is not physically, mentally

and morally fitted. Probation officers shall be selected because of

definite qualifications as to character, ability and training, and

primarily with respect to their capacity for rightly influencing human

behavior. The director of any probation department may appoint

non-salaried volunteer probation officers, provided they have the

qualifications required of salaried officers. The general rules

regulating methods and procedures in the administration of probation, as

may be adopted from time to time pursuant to section two hundred

forty-three of this chapter, may require additional minimum

qualifications for probation personnel and shall set forth procedures,

not inconsistent with this or other laws, to be followed in appointment

of all probation personnel.

2. The office of probation and correctional alternatives may when

necessary certify in writing the need of one or more salaried probation

officers to the official body charged with responsibility for

appropriating funds for support of government in the political

subdivision of the state wherein a probation department is located. Such

body shall then determine whether such need exists and if found to exist

it shall fix the salary of such probation officer and appropriate the

necessary funds, as well as provide for the necessary expenses of such

officer.

3. Each probation officer who collects or has custody of money, before

entering upon the duties of his or her office, shall execute a bond,

pursuant to the provisions of section eleven of the public officers law,

in a penal sum to be fixed by the local director of probation with

sufficient sureties approved thereby, conditioned for the honest

accounting for all money received by him or her as such probation

officer. In the discretion of the local director of probation, a

position scheduled bond covering all such probation officers may be

procured and executed in lieu of such individual bonds. The accounts of

all probation officers shall be subject to audit at any time by the

proper fiscal authorities and the office of probation and correctional

alternatives.

4. It shall be the duty of every probation officer to furnish to each

of his or her probationers a statement of the conditions of probation,

and to instruct him or her with regard thereto; to keep informed

concerning his or her conduct, habits, associates, employment,

recreation and whereabouts; to contact him or her at least once a month

pursuant to rules promulgated by the commissioner of the division of

criminal justice services; to aid and encourage him or her by friendly

advice and admonition; and by such other measures as may seem most

suitable to bring about improvement in his or her conduct, condition and

general attitude toward society. Probation officers shall report to the

head of the probation bureau or department who shall in turn report in

writing to the court and the office of probation and correctional

alternatives at least monthly or where there is no bureau or department,

directly to the court and the office of probation and correctional

alternatives concerning the conduct and condition of probationers; keep

records of their work as probation officers; keep accurate and complete

accounts of all money collected from probationers; give receipts

therefor and make prompt returns thereof at least monthly; aid in

securing employment; perform such other duties in connection with such

probationer as the court may direct or as required by the general rules

adopted pursuant to section two hundred forty-three of this chapter; and

make such reports to the office of probation and correctional

alternatives as it may require.

4-a. In the event a probationer ceases to participate in or is

unsuccessfully terminated from an alcohol or substance abuse program

ordered by the court as a condition of a sentence of probation pursuant

to section 410.10 of the criminal procedure law or section 65.10 of the

penal law, the probation officer shall immediately report said cessation

or termination to the local probation director. The local probation

director shall report said cessation or termination to the court within

ninety days, except where the probationer has resumed participation in

an alcohol or substance abuse program with the approval of the local

probation director. The local probation director shall include the fact

of any such report to the court in the next monthly written report to

the court and the state director of probation and correctional

alternatives as required pursuant to subdivision four of this section.

4-b. It shall be the duty of every probation officer to provide

written notice to probationers under the officer's supervision who may

be subject to any requirement to report to the office of victim services

any funds of a convicted person as defined in section six hundred

thirty-two-a of this chapter, the procedures for such reporting and any

potential penalty for a failure to comply.

5. Probation officers may require such reports by probationers as are

reasonable or necessary. Probation officers shall be peace officers.

6. (a) Notwithstanding subdivision one of this section, the director

of probation in counties with a population of more than three hundred

thousand, except counties wholly contained within a city, shall be in

the non-competitive class of civil service and shall be appointed by the

county executive with the approval of the local governing body. There

shall be one deputy director of probation, who shall be in the

non-competitive class of civil service. Such deputy shall be appointed

by the director of probation.

(b) No person shall be eligible for appointment as a director of

probation or deputy director of probation pursuant to subdivision one of

this section who does not meet the minimum qualification requirements

established for the position by the general rules regulating methods and

procedures in the administration of probation.

(c) The provisions of this subdivision shall not apply to any person

holding the office of director or deputy director of probation in any

such county on the effective date of this subdivision during the term of

such office.