What makes some judges decide on probation and others not?
I was in court today (minor) and saw many people go up and plead.
Many were late tax filers. What is important in probation, no previous record, the severity of the crime, etc.
I have heard of people getting busted for the same offense over and over and just getting off.
I knew someone who committed a felony (first offense) and got probation. Heck someone pled guilty to involuntary manslaughter and got probation. (not today)
The starting point is the statute that creates the offence and sets the penalty. Judges have to comply with the terms of the statute as set by the Legislature (unless there’s a constitutional defect in the statute). So if the Legislature doesn’t permit probation for the particular offence, by setting a minimum penalty of a fine or imprisonment, the Court cannot grant probation.
If probation is available for the particular offence, the next question is what terms the Legislature has set for it to be available. If the Legislature has set terms for probation (e.g. - no previous record), then the offender must meet those terms for probation to be granted.
If the Legislature has not set terms, merely said that it is available, the courts themselves will have ranges of conduct governing the grant of probation. Like any judicial decision, probation should not be granted simply on the whim of the particular judge. The goal of the courts is to ensure consistency, from offender to offender and from court to court. The courts will set out in their decisions the factors that they will take into account in favour of probation, and those factors counting against probation.
All of which says that it’s not possible to give a clear-cut answer to your question, without knowing the jurisdiction and the relevant statutes that govern the offence. However, as a general concept, things like being a first offence, being a relatively non-serious offence (failure to file compared to something like armed robbery), and the lack of physical harm to a victim are all likely to count in favour of probation.