The community rehabilitation companies that took over the probation trusts have been short-changed, literally, by Grayling, who brazenly overestimated the numbers they would get to supervise in order to attract their business.
He was basically on probation from the moment he took over the chairmanship.
The justice secretary has invited private companies, charities and probation "mutuals" to bid to take over the supervision of 225,000 medium and low-risk offenders on a payment-by-results basis.
Instead of probation officers, there's a television crew taking over the block, shooting an episode of Law & Order: SVU.
While the sheriff's department had insisted that the heir to a share of the Hilton Hotel fortune, who violated her probation over a drink-driving case, would not get special treatment, the move brought instant condemnation yesterday.
And a recent survey commissioned by the American Civil Liberties Union shows that three-quarters of Americans favor treatment and probation over prison for nonviolent drug use.
But on some points, such as probation over prison where appropriate, diminishing penalties for minor infractions such as marijuana possession, and juvenile-justice reform, the reforms thus motivated are also fair and just.
Tony Stewart, who said Nascar's $10,000 fine and season-long probation over his most recent outburst was too light, was hit even harder by his own team sponsor yesterday.
Christopher Painter, deputy chief of the Justice Department's computer crime section and the former assistant United States attorney who prosecuted Mr. Mitnick, said that once Mr. Mitnick's probation is over, he will not be subject to any special surveillance.
