Fillable Printable Presentence Investigation Report Form - Texas

Presentence Investigation Report Form - Texas

Texas Community Supervision Officer Certification Pre-Coursework

September 2011 Module 6 1

Module 6:

Pre-Sentence Investigation Reports

Performance Objectives for this module:

1. Define the primary purpose of the PSIR.

2. List 5 secondary purposes of the PSIR.

3. List 3 major procedures in PSIR preparation.

4. Identify 6 PSIR content areas required by law.

5. List 7 guidelines an officer should bear in mind when compiling a PSIR.

6. State the rule for including “hearsay” in a PSIR.

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This section will review the purpose of the Pre-sentence investigation report (PSI or PSIR) and

give you some specific methods for conducting your investigation and formulating your

recommendation.

A. Purpose of the PSIR

Article 42.12, Section 9(a) of The Texas Code of Criminal Procedure states in part:

"...before the imposition of sentence by a judge... the judge shall direct a supervision

officer to report in writing on the circumstances of the offense with which the offender is

charged, the amount of restitution necessary to adequately compensate a victim of the

offense, the criminal and social history of the offender, and any other information relating

to the offender or the offense requested by the judge.”

In addition, Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, Article 42.12, section 9(d) establishes that:

“Unless waived by the defendant, at least 48 hours before sentencing a defendant, the

judge shall permit the defendant or his counsel to read the pre- sentence report…”

The CSCD must ensure timely preparation of the PSI report at least 48 hours prior to

sentencing unless there are circumstances under which a judge may decide not to order a PSI

report or unless the defendant has waived his right to a PSI report. Your local policies and

procedures may vary regarding these circumstances.

The primary purpose of the PSIR is to present the sentencing judge with information to consider

about the offender's life and character. Thus, PSIRs should be prepared prior to the assessment

of punishment or granting of community supervision so that the information can assist the Judge

in "permitting the meaningful exercise of sentencing discretion.” In many cases, depending on

the preference of your Judge, a recommendation regarding the appropriateness of placement

on community supervision is included.

What are some secondary purposes of the PSIR? (Who else benefits from the PSIR?)

1. The PSIR gives the CSCD some input into the decision of what will happen to a

offender once he is placed on community supervision. The TDCJ-CJAD PSIR format includes a

section entitled "Supervision Plan.” This section allows the investigating officer to identify

treatment needs and specify special conditions of community supervision. In addition, the

officer may recommend placement in a special program such as a Court Residential Treatment

Center or a specialized caseload.

2. The PSIR provides the supervising officer with a base of information that makes his

supervision of the offender more effective. Ideally, all community supervision cases would be

preceded with a PSIR. PSIRs give valuable information about the offender that provides the

foundation for case classification and case planning.

3. The PSIR assists the Correctional Institutions Division (CID) in Classification: When

an offender is sentenced to the CID, the PSIR is often the sole source of information regarding

the offender's personal history and treatment needs.

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September 2011 Module 6 3

If a PSIR was prepared on an offender, it is required

by law to be part of the "pen packet"

sent when a convicted offender is transferred to the CID. [TCCP, Article 42.09, section 8 (10)]

This also includes any offender revoked and sentenced to CID after 12-1-91 and all jury cases.

4. The PSIR assists the Parole Board in the parole decision. The PSIR can assist the

Parole Board in assessing the offender's risk to the community and the degree to which his

rehabilitative needs have been met during the period of incarceration.

5. The PSIR provides information to assist other residential programs. The PSIR can

be of great assistance to residential programs for case program planning purposes. Also, in

some circumstances a PSIR may be provided to treatment programs so that special needs can

be met or problems avoided. In the latter, a "Release of Information" would be required.

B. Conducting the Investigation

Three major tasks are involved in conducting the investigation. To complete your investigation

efficiently/effectively, you must devise a strategy for collecting and compiling your information. If

your department already has a specified procedure, you must follow that one. If it does not,

your manual provides a step-by-step strategy that probably could be adapted to the needs of

your department. Whatever your specific investigative strategy, use it consistently. This will give

you some direction and also forces you to do first things first.

The strategy we recommend can be divided into three major procedures:

1. Obtaining/Reviewing Records

2. Interviewing Offender/Relevant Parties

3. Organizing Information/Compiling the Report

1. Obtaining and Reviewing Records

If you intend to obtain some of your information by correspondence, you must obtain releases of

information from the offender and mail your correspondence immediately in order for it to return

in time for you to prepare your report. For efficiency's sake, you may want to delegate a staff

person to automatically request certain consent forms signed by the offender and to process

these requests immediately (e.g., former employers, FBI, last school, etc.).

Other records you will want to obtain or view directly (e.g., offense report, D.A. file, etc).

2. Interviewing Offender and Other Relevant Parties

Interviewing is a primary source of information for the PSIR. The interview affords opportunities

not available from records, such as:

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a. to observe how information is presented as well as what is presented.

b. to probe for clarity when given conflicting information.

In CSO Certification training, you will receive training on "Assessment Interviewing.” That

training will be useful in PSIR interviews. Also, you will be provided an interview guide to assist

you in interviewing the offender and relevant others.

3. Compiling the Report

Once you have obtained the necessary information, you complete the PSIR by

responding to a series of fill in the blank, multiple choice and yes/no items. You may also want

to attach brief narrative summaries for various sections to provide the sentencing judge or

supervising officer with more detailed or elaborate information.

C. Content of the PSIR

By law the PSIR must address the circumstances of the offense, restitution the criminal and

social history of the offender, and any other information requested by the judge. It must also

include a client supervision plan describing the programs and sanctions that the CSCD would

provide if the offender were granted community supervision. [42.12, sec.9 (a)] and information

regarding whether the defendant is a current or former member of the State military forces or

whether the defendant is currently serving or has previously served in a U.S. armed forces in an

active duty status (42-12 Sec 9) (1)

If the court determines that alcohol or drug abuse may have contributed to the offense, it shall

require an alcohol/drug abuse evaluation to be done. [42.12, sec.9 (h)]

A presentence report conducted on a felony offender who appears to the court or any other

party to have a mental impairment shall include a psychological evaluation and a determination

of his IQ and adaptive behavior score. [42.12, sec.9 (i)]

For offenders charged with or convicted of a sex offense committed on or after 9/1/2003, a

judge must order an evaluation for treatment, specialized supervision or rehabilitation and the

results must be in the presentence or post sentence report. [42.12, sec.9a (c)]

PSI Report Format

The TDCJ-CJAD approved (09-14-11) PSIR format consists of 5 pages of non narrative

responses. Keep in mind that this form is the minimum required by law.

1. Court/Legal Information: This section identifies the court of original jurisdiction, judge,

and attorneys assigned to the case.

2. Offender Information: This section includes identifying and demographic information

on the offender.

3. Current Offense: If the official offense report is not attached to the PSIR, this section

should include a concise SUMMARY of that report - brief and to the point.

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While the offense report will be the major source of information for this subsection, you

may also want to interview the arresting officer(s) or review any other available documents. By

doing so, you may get clarification of the offense itself or further information regarding unusual

circumstances surrounding the offense (e.g., alcohol/drug use; relationship with co-defendants).

4. Custodial Information: This section identifies whether or not the offender is currently

under the supervision of a law enforcement agency.

5. Criminal History: The purpose of this section is to summarize your investigation of the

offender's prior offense history. This will allow you to assess risk as well as look for any

patterns, such as a history of alcohol/drug use, assaultiveness/violence, or sexual dysfunction.

A source of information regarding adult criminal history is the DPS Rap Sheet. However,

additional sources of information such as the FBI Rap Sheet, the offender himself, or court

documents may be necessary because the DPS Rap Sheet may be incomplete.

A major requirement for this sub-section is to be 100% factual. Do not include

speculations that the offender has engaged in criminal acts that are not supported by official

records. Include just the facts.

You may include offenses for which the offender has been arrested but not convicted.

However, you must clearly indicate that a conviction was not involved. If the offender tells you

about an offense that you cannot verify with specific records/ documents, make sure that you

identify the offender as the source of this information. Also, include the date the offender

provided you with this information and the fact you were unable to officially verify his statement.

In many cases, it may be necessary to investigate the circumstances of prior offenses. This is

particularly important when:

1) The record indicates a probation or community supervision or parole revocation.

2) The record gives conflicting accounts of an offense.

3) There's an apparent pattern of violence or repeated use of weapons.

Depending on the length and seriousness of the offender's criminal record, you may

wish to include an attachment noting offenses, dispositions, and community supervision/parole

history.

6. Victim Information: This section of the PSIR asks for information pertaining to restitution. An

interview with the victim and the offense report will be important sources of information.

Victim statements substantiated by other sources such as the offense report, district

attorney records, statements of witnesses, receipts, bills, or statements from counselors,

clergy, and/or members of the victim's family may also be attached. Summarize the

damage (tangible and intangible) that has been done to the victim(s) of the offense.

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7. Social History: This section requests information regarding the offender's status at the

time the offense was committed. It also inquires as to whether or not a psychological report has

been prepared and whether or not the offender has a physical or medical impairment. Keep in

mind the laws regarding confidentiality when addressing these topics. This section also

addresses the offender's educational and employment status.

8. Military Service: This section requires information regarding the defendant’s military

service history if applicable. If the defendant has served in an active duty status, a

determination must be made on whether the defendant was deployed to a combat zone and

whether the defendant may suffer from post -tramatic stress disorder or a tramatic brain injury.

Also, if available, a copy of the defendants discharge papers and military records must be

included in the PSI provided to the judge.

9. Substance Abuse: This section asks the PSIR writer to provide information regarding

the offender's reported use of drugs and alcohol. It asks for very specific information regarding

the type and frequency of the drug(s) used, type of drug counseling/treatment received and

whether or not drugs/alcohol were an influencing or motivating factor in the commission of the

offense.

10. Supervision Plan: The supervision plan outlines your plans regarding supervision of the

offender should the court elect to place him/her on community supervision. The supervision

plan should be completed regardless of your recommendation to the court. Even if you

recommend that an offender not be placed on community supervision, the court may still elect to

do so. By completing the supervision plan on every case you assure that you will have the

opportunity for input into the judge's decision concerning what will happen to the offender once

he is placed on community supervision. In effect you are addressing those need areas identified

in the body of the report and providing recommendations for special conditions to meet those

need areas.

However, if the offender is not eligible for community supervision, check the blank "Other" and

indicate "Ineligible for Probation" in the "Specify" blank.

11. Optional Sections: Attachments to PSIR form:

Offender's version: If information about the offender's version is to be attached to your

report, this section should be an objective description of the offender's account of the present

offense. In particular you would:

-- Identify any discrepancies between the official version and the offender's

version of the offense.

-- Assess the offender's present attitude toward the offense. Does he regret the

offense and express empathy for the victim, or does he merely regret how getting

caught has affected his own life?

-- Assess the degree of pre-meditation on the part of the offender. Premeditation

may indicate risk for reoffense.

-- Determine any circumstances leading up to the commission of the offense. Again,

this information can help you determine patterns and assess risk.

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Answers to these questions may assist you in assessing risk to the community as well

as identifying treatment needs of the offender.

Evaluation and prognosis: The purpose of this section is to carefully analyze the PSIR

information and to draw some conclusions regarding the appropriateness of a community

supervision sentence.

Summarize all pertinent facts that relate to the pros and cons of community supervision.

Be concise but also make sure that your analysis is complete. Remember, this is the only

section of the PSIR that allows for your interpretation of information. However, your

interpretation should be supported by the facts. This is probably the most difficult section to

write.

Finally, in some jurisdictions the judge will want more than a discussion of the pros and

cons of community supervision; he will ask for a specific recommendation regarding the

appropriateness of community supervision as a sentencing option for that offender. If this is the

case in your jurisdiction, your evaluation/prognosis section should begin with a clear and direct

recommendation such as, "It is my judgment that Mr. Williams would be inappropriate for

community supervision." This should be followed by the specific reasons for your

recommendation, such as an extensive criminal history, an assaultive criminal pattern, lack of

support, and/or willingness to change. Again, this section should be concise but not at the

expense of completeness.

Disposition: In this final section of the report you indicate the disposition of the case.

D. Compiling the Report:

When compiling a PSIR report, there are several guidelines you should keep in mind. These

are:

(a) Be Sure of Your Facts: An inaccurate report can seriously damage your credibility in

the eyes of the judge and other criminal justice officials. Additionally, the offender deserves an

accurate report. Finally, getting the facts and reporting them right the first time will save you the

time and expense of correcting the report later.

(b) Maintain objectivity: You will often have feelings and opinions when preparing a PSIR

report. It is appropriate to include these feelings and opinions in the narrative sections of the

report if they are identified as such and you can back them up with facts. Overall, the report

should be fair, thorough and non-judgmental.

simple and familiar language. Also, unless your director or judge prefers differently, write in the

first person. This means using the word "I" rather than "this officer," and referring to the

offender by name rather than "the subject". This differs from other departmental or professional

reports that you may write.

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(d) Identify & verify your information: Identify your sources by name. When possible,

verify information provided by the offender and other sources. When verification is unreasonable

or impossible, indicate that within the PSIR report.

(e) Hearsay is information which is based on "second hand" knowledge. In other words,

the person providing the information does not have direct knowledge of a given situation, but

heard about it through someone else.

Hearsay is disallowed in trials because, by its very nature, it is not subject to

cross-examination. For pre-sentence reporting, case law has ruled that hearsay can be

included in a PSIR if it is identified as such.

(f) False information: According to article 42.12 section 9(e), “the judge shall allow the

defendant or his attorney to comment on a presentence investigation or a postsentence report

and, with the approval of the judge, introduce testimony or other information alleging a factual

inaccuracy in the investigation or report.” As we stated earlier, be sure of your facts.

(g) Disclosure: Since the offender or his counsel may read the pre-sentence report,

officers should carefully select materials to be included. If information is of questionable validity,

don't include it. If information would be damaging to the source or others if disclosed to the

offender, discuss this information with your supervisor or director.

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September 2011 Module 6 9

QUICK QUIZ:

1. Define the primary purpose of the PSIR:

2. List 5 secondary purposes of the PSIR:

3. List 3 major procedures in the PSIR preparation:

4. Identify6 PSIR content areas required by law:

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5. List 7 guidelines an officer should bear in mind when compiling a PSIR:

6. State the rule for including hearsay in a PSIR: