ABSTRACT
The role of the probation service in the criminal justice process represents at least two theoretical dilemmas: the extent to which criminal courts are obliged to follow the advice of non-legal professionals and the extent to which a balance can be maintained between care for an offender and control of an offender. It has been said that the probation service represents a mechanism whereby courts can institutionalize their ambivalence (Millard 1982). When requesting reports and when placing offenders on probation, they are admitting that they are unsure whether an offender should be punished or should receive help.
