Does the probation office choose where you can do your community service?

I will be entering a plea at the end of this month for a DUI charge in Orlando, FL. My plea mentions 50 hours community service. Question is, do I get to choose where I do my community service or do they assign where I have to complete it? What are my options if I get to choose where?

It varies from department to department... In our department, probationers can choose any not-for-profit organization for which they want to do their community service work... However, in the county next to us, they have a work crew, where all probationers assigned to community service do their work... A quick call to the Orlando Probation Department should answer your question...

The court should be able to provide you guidelines on what qualifies for community service, the rest is up to you. You can choose yourself, you PO will probably just monitor you.

Sorry, but that is highly unlikely. The law when you are found guilty doesn't give you choices. Your probation officer will have the resources within his organization to assign you your community service and what location you will be obligated to service. In New York, it's the responsibly of the local probation office to satisfy the courts decision with respect community service. In other words some probation office has an established location(s) where they bring people to clean up public places, parks, parking lots, fields ect...

Obviously in your state because the laws are different may have a different system....

When I lived in Florida, my stepson got in trouble and had to do community service. He was told where to report for this. He had no choice. A supervisor needs to sign the paperwork for each day and hours worked. Normally, the places are City or County venues such as the local dump or cemetary.

In my case, I had input on where, but the PO ultimately has the last word. If your choice is feasible, they will go with it, and also may be able to provide you with options you didn't think about. When I had to do it, I worked full time and didn't have much time to spare. Since i enjoy crafts, my PO suggested I spend my hours making something to donate to the Family Enrichment Centre, so I knitted a couple of dolls, which ended up taking way more hours than I needed, but that didn't matter.

sometimes they do. Sometimes they make it fit the crime, like working in a rehab center that has some dui accident victims.

You will be provided with more than one choice as to where you do your community service. You probation officer just makes sure that you complete it.
It usually ranges from feeding the homeless to cleaning a government building to picking up trash along the side of the highway.