John Augustus And The Progression Of The Justice System

Probation can be dated as far back as the Middle Ages, during the times of King Henry VIII. Due to the fact that more than two-hundred crimes were punishable by death, a new form of punishment needed to be created. To be put to death for a minor offense, why should a person be killed because they stole something as simple as a candy bar? It was becoming outrageous and people were beginning to become concerned with the progression of the justice system. Society had the right to be worried about how authorities were handling the solutions to crime and though it took some time quite a few programs had been adopted; pardons could be purchased by the accused, judges could refrain from applying statutes or stolen property could be devalued by the court so that offenders could be charged with a lesser crime. As time progressed so did the system, offenders were eventually able to pay a fee as collateral for good behavior.
The man was ordered to appear in court weeks later and when he returned Augustus was by his side and he showed no signs of being under the influence, to say those who were in the courtroom were shocked was an understatement. Due to the dramatic change in the man, Augustus started on his eighteen year career as a probation officer. John Augustus is known to be the Father of Probation and was credited for the investigations process, which is one of the three main concepts of Modern Probation, with supervision and intake being the remaining two concepts. By 1858 Augustus had successfully provided bail for nearly two-thousand men, in which only ten forfeited. In 1859 shortly after his death the first probation statue was enacted in