Probation officers monitor him, teach schoolchildren about crime and clean up graffiti: what Trump could face if he is convicted in New York and avoids prison

His fiercest critics, including Michael Cohen, have shared their dreams of seeing Donald Trump behind bars.

But a much more realistic outcome if he is convicted in New York would be weekly calls to contact a probation officer or visit Bronx schoolchildren to teach them about crime, legal experts say.

The defendant who complains that he is the victim of “sham prosecution” in a “rat’s nest” of corruption may even be allowed to design his own community service program.

Convicted criminals and attorneys agree that probation is a much better alternative to prison time, but there are downsides to it and they should not be minimized.

‘You definitely don’t want that. Who wants to have to check in? It’s like going on a date with your mom and dad,” says prominent New York attorney Arthur Aidala.

It means Trump would have to report once a week, usually by phone, and then once a month to answer a series of questions. He would have to tell his court-appointed officer if he has been rearrested, if he has been working and if he has had any other problems.

For a former president who was admonished in a courtroom for complaining that it was “icy cold,” even those tasks could be tough.

And failure to comply with the terms of probation has landed thousands of New Yorkers in jail.

For Trump, probation would be an absolute waste of time and energy, he said. ‘Should this guy be monitored? You need to know where he is? What he does?’ Aidala, a criminal lawyer who represented Harvey Weinstein, told DailyMail.com.

A much better sentencing option for him if Trump were convicted would be for the judge to impose community service, he said, or to ask Trump and his team to come up with some ideas on how we can help the city.

Trump held a campaign rally in the Bronx and during the trial has complained about crime in the Big Apple and people fleeing the city.

“Talk to him about the Trump Organization setting up some kind of food bank or loneliness center for seniors, something that our society needs and that he could use his platform” to address. “I don’t see Donald Trump going to the park to clean up graffiti,” he added.

But a probationary period is not a piece of cake.

‘One of the things the probation service looks at is whether or not someone admits their wrongdoing and shows some form of remorse or responsibility.

“I can’t imagine what those conversations will be like if Trump is convicted and meets with a probation officer,” said Adam Shlahet, a former public defender and prosecutor who teaches at Fordham law school.

Experts do not expect Trump to receive a number of typical community service orders, such as picking up trash or removing graffiti

Judge Juan Merchan has wide latitude to consider fines, community service, probation or prison time if Trump is convicted

Michael Cohen was annoyed by the conditions of supervised release and tried to have them lifted, he testified

‘Probation comes with some real responsibilities. You will need to meet with your probation officer and report to your probation officer. There are limits to your travels.

“I have no idea how the probation department will handle monitoring the potential president of the United States. I can’t imagine anyone ever taking that into account,” he told DailyMail.com.

It is a regime that Trump, who was fined $10,000 by Judge Juan Merchan for violating a gag order, may not be able to comply.

“Probation and parole are a serious burden. There are many people incarcerated because they violated their probation and parole. The criminal’s revolving door,” Shlahet said.

But it’s something the city’s probation department says it can handle.

“We have media cases all the time. It’s New York,” said Shamira Gambrell, Director of Juvenile Operations for the New York City Probation Department.

Merchan spoke during the trial about the importance of treating Trump like an ordinary defendant when it comes to punishment or protecting his rights.

“The last thing I want to do is put you in jail,” Merchan told Trump this month. “You are the former president of the United States, and possibly the next president. There are many reasons why incarceration is really a last resort for you.”

But that statement came before the jury had a chance to weigh in. And Merchan, now appointed to his post, may one day have to face the voters themselves.

One ex-con who appreciates the burden of post-release reporting requirements is star witness Michael Cohen.

He told prosecutors how he tried to shorten his sentence even after it was commuted to home detention, with restrictions on how much he could travel and obligations to report to authorities.

Defense lawyers suggested it was part of a motive to lie about Trump.

New York State and its counties spent $280 million on a probation system between 2002 and 2011. Council of State Governments. Seventeen percent of adults who went to prison committed a crime or misdemeanor while on probation.

In 2011, 6,100 people on probation were resentenced to prison for violating their terms while under supervision.