Press Release  Trial Court Leaders Appoint Pamerson O. Ifill as Massachusetts Probation Service Commissioner

BOSTON, MA — Trial Court Chief Justice Jeffrey A. Locke and Trial Court Administrator Thomas G. Ambrosino today announced that they have appointed Deputy Commissioner Pamerson O. Ifill to serve as the next Commissioner of Probation for Massachusetts. He will begin a five-year term of office on November 27, 2023. Deputy Commissioner Ifill succeeds Commissioner Edward Dolan who was appointed in 2013 and retired earlier this year.

“We are pleased to appoint a probation professional with 30 years of experience whose energetic vision and commitment to improving the lives of those served by the Massachusetts Probation Service bodes well for the future of the Commonwealth,” said Trial Court Chief Justice Locke and Trial Court Administrator Ambrosino. “Deputy Commissioner Ifill has proven leadership capability and his knowledge of the court system and criminal justice issues in Massachusetts will ensure the continued advancement of the department’s professionalism.”  

Mr. Ifill has served as the Deputy Commissioner of Pretrial Services for the Massachusetts Probation Service since 2019. Prior to his current role, he served as a Regional Supervisor of Probation Services, the Chief Probation Officer for Suffolk Superior Court, and a Regional Program Manager for the Office of Community Corrections. He served as a Juvenile Court Probation Officer in Barnstable/Plymouth Counties from 1993 to 1998. Deputy Commissioner Ifill is an adjunct professor at Suffolk University and Stonehill College, and regularly speaks at national conferences on criminal justice issues.  

While serving as a deputy commissioner, Mr. Ifill designed a text messaging notification system for criminal defendants that improved court appearance rates and now is used in certain civil cases, created a departmental training program on racial and cultural equity, and established the annual Cultural Appreciation Week held in courthouses across the Commonwealth in October.

“It is an honor and privilege to be named to this position,” said Deputy Commissioner Ifill. “I greatly appreciate the trust that the Chief Justice and Court Administrator have placed in me to build on the strong tradition of the Probation service, which began in Massachusetts in 1878. It is my intent and my pledge in this role to deliver access to justice with dignity and speed from the probation perspective to serve the residents of the Commonwealth.”

Deputy Commissioner Ifill has a master’s degree in management of human services from Brandeis University and a bachelor’s degree from Stonehill College. He serves on the board of the Old Colony Service Corporation, and previously served from 2008 to 2018 on the board of Massasoit Community College, as chair beginning in 2013.

The Commissioner heads the Massachusetts Probation Service (MPS) and the Office of Community Corrections, which have 1,800 staff in more than 100 locations across the state. In conjunction with local, state, and federal law enforcement and human services agencies, MPS works to increase community safety, support victims and survivors, and assist individuals to achieve long term positive change.

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