Enforcing Instructions Against Oppressive Conduct
| Date | 01 March 1994 |
| DOI | 10.1177/026455059404100103 |
| Published date | 01 March 1994 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
Enforcing
Instructions
Against Oppressive
Conduct
Though probation staff are obligated to promote equal opportunities
and to challenge service users’ discriminatory and oppressive
language and behaviour, the legal basis for enforcement proceedings
in exceptional instances in response to serious misconduct of this
nature is far from clearcut. The notion of oppressiveness is not easily
defined and may be open to the challenge that it is too vague and
subjective to be enforceable. Paul Cooper of John Moores University,
Liverpool, and Josie Cooper, probation officer with Merseyside
Probation Service, explore the legal provisions and suggest a possible
way forward in giving valid instructions.
ur
in accordance with such instructions as
purpose in this article is to
promote
he/she may from time to time be given, and
thought amongst prac-
to notify the officer of any change of address.
titioners about practical strategies for pro-
The legal problem in seekmg to respond
secution that may assist probation staff to
by prosecution to oppressive behaviour by
respond to service users who engage in
a probationer is that there is now no stan-
serious oppressive behaviour. The ap-
dard provision within probation orders that
propmate legal strategy for oppressive con-
requires a probationer to be of ’good
duct is hkely to vary according to the order
behaviour’. Richard and Sarah Ward have
or licence involved. Our review, therefore,
observed:
deals with each order separately.
’Care should be taken to ensure that any
breach proceedings ... can be brought
Probation Orders
within the specific breach provisions. In
terms of probation orders, the fact that
Under the Powers of the Criminal
the standard requirement that the offender
Courts Act 1973 s 2(6) the standard terms
should be ’of good behaviour’ no longer
of a probation order simply require the pro-
forms part of the prescribed probation
bationer to keep m
touch with the probation
order makes it more difficult to rely on
officer responsible for his/her supervision
’unacceptable behaviour’ as a basis of
14
breach proceedings, since it cannot be
basis of unacceptable behaviour is likely to
shown that the offender is in breach of
be difficult. If, however, instructions as to
a specific requirement.’
time and place of appointment also include
a specific statement of Service expectations
Moreover,...
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