Probation officers in Malta are stretched too thin, with a team of 24 following some 1,000 offenders, according to Department of Probation and Parole’s director.

“We’re very overworked – we need more staff but we don’t have enough funds,” Miriam Sevasta told The Sunday Times of Malta, adding that each probation officer had a case load of around 60.

“Having more staff would allow us to offer better supervision. Time management is very restricted – having a slightly lighter case load would allow us to spend more time with our client. We must strive to improve the quality of our services.”

Ms Sevasta points out that probation is a cost-effective option since its alternative – incarceration – costs the taxpayer around €60 to €70 per inmate. Compared to the police and armed forces, the probation department has a higher ratio of women: 14 of 20 officers are female, while only one of four senior probation officers is male.

Their Marsa premises also house a victim liaison officer and two psychologists. The staff undergoes regular training through the year.

Rather than handing down a sentence of effective imprisonment, the court may choose a probation order, community service order, combination order or suspended sentence with a supervision order.

Probation officers are tasked with supervising such offenders, with the probation period lasting from one to three years. When it comes to suspended sentences, a probation officer may be required to shadow the offender for up to four years.

The services of probation officers are also required when inmates are provisionally released on parole.

The frequency of meetings between offender and officer differs according to the case, although typically it starts at once a week. The officer prepares a tailor-made care plan and refers the offender to other entities – such as Caritas, Mount Carmel Hospital and Aġenzija Sedqa – according to the person’s needs. The department’s youngest clients are aged 14.

If the offender breaches the probation order, he or she is taken to court, where the magistrate may issue an admonishment, a fine or even a prison term.

A 33-year-old former drug user opens up

“I was a heavy drug user – although I never injected myself, I spent 16 years on drugs. I tried every single drug available.

I was handed a supervision order. I didn’t hear pleasant things on probation officers. The people I frequented at the time warned to be careful, because they’ll ‘chuck me into prison’.

I didn’t believe she could help me. I was directed to rehab but quit after seven months. My probation officer informed the court and the magistrate ordered me to return to the programme or end up behind bars for 10 months. I chose jail.

It was the third time I had found my-self in prison. After two months, Caritas approached me. I thought it was a mistake. I was offered to spend the last eight months of my sentence undergoing the programme. I reasoned it was better to spend those months outside, eating better meals. So I agreed.

Then I woke up one morning and I don’t know what happened. I think it must have been a miracle: I decided to take it seriously. I have been clean for two years and, after undergoing 50 interviews, I was given a job by two kind people immediately after finishing rehab.

I started out thinking my probation officer was worse than the police. She is now one of the most important people in my life and we are still in touch.”

Two female probation officers describe their mission

A security guard stands outside, and each small room is equipped with CCTV cameras and a panic button. Every day, Mary Anne Zammit and Carmen Nygaard sit down in these rooms to meet violent perpetrators, sex offenders and people under the influence of drugs to tell them things the offenders often do not want to hear.

Have they ever felt afraid?

“No we haven’t – we knew what we were getting into before taking up the job,” Ms Zammit, who has been a probation officer for 20 years, says. “And if you’re easily afraid, this is definitely not the job for you.”

That doesn’t mean they have never felt demotivated, adds Ms Nygaard, a senior probation officer in the job for 18 years. “But you can’t save the world. As the saying goes, you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink.”

Sometimes I have been told that they’ll come after my family

Ms Nygaard explains that she has had threats made against her, especially upon informing some of her clients that she would have to testify in favour of their probation order being terminated after repeated breaches.

“Sometimes I have been told that they’ll come after my family. But people leading such lives say a lot of things. Some may actually mean it but it’s actually very rare.

“Often enough, once they end up behind bars, they seem to come to their senses and tell us: ‘You were right, you gave us many chances’.”

Most of their clients are inevitably males – but that presents no problem as, often enough, males respond better to female probation officers. The most resistance they encounter is from males aged over 60, who often have a hard time accepting a woman in authority. They have learnt to retain some emotional detachment – allowing themselves to be too emotionally engaged can be detrimental to both themselves and their clients.

“We do show a degree of emotion and appreciation but, at the end of the day, people can change and we are ultimately obliged to testify against them if they fail to progress. It’s good to instil a little fear in them so that they do not get overly comfortable and start abandoning their obligations,” Ms Zammit says.

Probation officers are often the first to identify underlying problems which have gone undetected for years.

“I do feel sorry at times,” Ms Zammit says. “We encounter certain social and psychiatric problems; had there been intervention when the client was younger, they would not have ended up committing the crime.

“But you have to salvage what you can. There’s always a ray of hope – always. I’ve seen a lot of people change. Otherwise, I would not have remained in the job.”

Ms Nygaard’s face glows when she recalls a case of a 40-year-old man who presented himself to her as a jobless, heavy drug addict. Ms Nygaard identified a creative streak in him and obtained funds from the Malta Community Chest Fund so he could learn welding at MCAST. He even obtained City and Guilds qualifications.

She also encouraged a parolee to take up a hairdressing course. Despite ending up in prison due to another case, the woman pursued the course and is “doing very well”.

“There’s a pattern we identify. Those who are still experimenting and who think that drugs are great won’t always be a success. They may fail to attend sessions or keep appointments. We sometime drive them to rehab and accompany them to the ETC for job interviews. Some will do all you ask of them – but once they get the job, they leave after one day or get themselves fired.

“On the other hand, those who turn up with the view that the magistrate has given them another chance at life are much more successful.”