When Probation Ends

Knowing when probation begins is generally pretty easy. Figuring out when it ends can be a little trickier. I wrote about when probation begins here. The TLDR version is this: generally, probation begins on the day it is imposed and, by default, runs concurrently with any other period of probation, parole, or imprisonment to which the defendant might also be subject. G.S. 15A-1346(a). A judge can run a probation period consecutive to an undischarged term of imprisonment, G.S. 15A-1346(b), and when he or she does that, the probation period does not begin until the person is released from jail or prison in the previous case. (I discussed contingent sentences in the post linked above and here.) But when does probation end? Probation periods are generally ordered in months, and so the answer would seem to be that probation ends the stated number of months after it begins. The rule of thumb I hear most of the time goes something like this: if probation is imposed on a particular date in a particular month, then it will end one day before that date of the calendar month that is the appropriate number of months into the future. For example, if the court imposes a 12-month probation period on January 10, 2018, most people would (I think) say it ends on January 9, 2019. Some might say it ends on January 10, 2019. The appellate courts have never really weighed in on the question directly. And they’re not always consistent when discussing the issue [...]