Consultant Kathleen M. Schaefer tells why some juvenile offenders are good candidates for early release (reproduced from Hour Detroit magazine, March 2010)
Your guide in difficult times.
Professional Probation & Parole Consulting, Inc. provides experienced, professional assistance for clients and their attorneys with a wide variety of challenges including:
Pre-sentence Interview
Preparing for Pre-Sentence Interviews
Rehabilitation Reports
Assistance in Composing and Submitting Rehabilitation Reports
Parole Board Interview
Attending Interviews as Lay Representative
Record Expungement
Assistance in the Preparation of Court Documentation
Public Hearing
Preparation of Client for a Public Hearing
Mitigation Reports
Independent Sentencing Mitigation Reports
Commutation and Pardon Applications
Assistance in Preparing Commutation and Pardon Applications Applications
Request for ReHearing
Assistance in the Preparation of a Request for a ReHearing
Re-Entry Plan
Home Placement, Employment Opportunities, and Substance Abuse Treatment
Testimonials
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“Kathleen was very instrumental in assisting my close friend at his probation hearing. Although he had prepared endlessly for his hearing, he later said that without her guidance and direction, he believes he would not have been successful. With Kathleen spending countless hours preparing him and then subsequently representing him at the hearing, my friend was granted a parole upon the first possible eligibility date.”
— Family friend of client -
“Kathleen, thank you so much for helping this event to come about in my life. You brought forth so many “needed” feelings from me, before my hearing. I don’t know how I would have gotten through on my own. Your professionalism and soft-spoken care truly made the difference for me. You did an incredible service, Kathleen, not only to me, but to my family as well.”
— Client who was released on parole -
“I would like to extend our heartfelt thanks for all of your assistance and guidance over the past couple of years. It has been a rough ten years, but your counseling and support has made the last couple a little easier.”
— Friend of a client -
“I would highly recommend Kathleen Schaefer for any work with a client in relation to parole matters. Her experience with the parole board and her background and qualifications make her better suited than even skilled and experienced attorneys to handle these issues in a way that would be best for virtually any criminal defense client. I don’t think my client would have been granted parole without her efforts.”
— Attorney F. Martin Tieber, East Lansing -
“We needed help getting ready for the parole board interview. Ms. Schaefer prepared us on what to expect (and) helped us prepare a professional parole packet that included letters of support, a letter from a prospective employer, and a commitment to a home placement with us. I couldn’t have done it without her. She was my rock.”
— Mother of a son who was subsequently paroled and discharged -
“Ms. Schaefer provided me with excellent insight into the parole process and was instrumental in the timely release of my client. ”
— Attorney Andis Svikis, Kalamazoo -
“I would highly recommend Ms. Schaefer to any defendant who wants to thoroughly and accurately present their case to the sentencing judge in a compelling way. She has a wealth of information and her contacts in the various probation departments is invaluable and critical to a successful outcome.”
— Attorney Craig A. Daly, Detroit -
“Nobody has more insight into the Michigan Department of Corrections than Kathleen Schaefer. Ms. Schaefer helped me get ready for the parole hearing and also spoke on my behalf. I was afraid of getting turned down, that I would spend my best adult years in prison, but I was able to get a parole at my first attempt.”
— A man who was paroled, discharged and now lives in Europe -
“In my cases, she has been able to streamline services for psychologically impaired clients and obtain ongoing information from the parole board during long commutation proceedings. Her services are truly invaluable.”
— Attorney Robyn B. Frankel, Bloomfield Hills -
“She’s the best at writing sentencing memorandum, has credibility with the courts, the keys to the gatekeepers, and is known by the thorough and complete effort she puts into her work.”
— Attorney and Counselor Todd Russell Perkins, Detroit -
“My son would likely not have gotten parole without Ms. Schaefer’s help. She handled everything — the follow-up, the phone calls and the appearance before the parole board. She was always there for us 100 percent. On a scale of 1 to 10, she’s a 10.”
— Danny Briggs, father of Daniel Briggs -
“I have used Kathleen Schaefer on several difficult sentencings, particularly those that have been convicted at trial, with prison guidelines, and/or child abuse/sexual assault convictions. I have found Kathleen’s consultation services and reports to be invaluable at sentencing because of her specific knowledge and experience in both courts and corrections. As a former MDOC employee and counselor she is able to uniquely shed light on each case for the Court and parole board. She is effective in both mitigation and client rehabilitation. PPPC has made a difference in every case I have brought her in on.”
— Mark A. Satawa, Attorney -
“Professional Probation and Parole’s report literally cut my client’s sentence in half. The judge originally sentenced my eighteen-year-old (special needs) client to 7-1/2 years in Jackson County for his involvement in several home invasions in the Jackson County area. When the Court discovered that most of Kathleen and Nicole’s report had not made it to chambers (only the update did), the Court granted our motion for resentencing and cut my client’s sentence in half based on the materials contained in that report. The report was thoughtful and went through various aspects of the client’s upbringing and history that an overworked probation simply didn’t have the time or ability to adequately cover.”
— Stuart G. Friedman, Attorney at Law
Articles & News
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Free Thinker
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The Cost of Paying a Debt to Society
The high cost of housing inmates has long been a drain on the economy. This does not include the social costs of sending a criminal to prison and just expecting them to be “reformed” without the benefit of therapeutic or educational assistance. It costs more each year to keep one individual in prison than one full year of tuition, room and board in any of our state’s 4-year public universities.
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House Judiciary Committee, April 18, 2007
“Allow me to provide information to the Committee regarding my background. I have worked in the Michigan Corrections field since 1976 where I began my career as a Prison Counselor. In my capacity as a prison counselor, I attended numerous parole board hearings with prisoners that were assigned to me.” -Testimony of Kathleen M. Schaefer, M.A., Parole, Sentencing and Commutation Consultant.