|
|
Corrections
Inside The Walls - Corrections, Prisons, and Correctional Officers
As
someone who has spent 50 plus years in law enforcement, and someone
who has worked, inside and outside of the prison walls,
I can appreciate the job that is done by the the men and women
in all levels of the corrections profession. I began
my career inside the walls in 1956 with the State of Maryland Department of
Corrections. The prison in which I worked was called
Patuxent Institution and housed mostly dangerous inmates who met the
criteria for a special law that could be compared to a "three strikes"
law.
At that time there was no training academy;
not even a one hour orientation class. Training, such as
it was, was
usually "on the job training" with a senior officer for several days
and then you were assigned to a post. During my tenure I was involved in hundreds of fights, was injured in a riot
and served as a lieutenant for three years.
After
eight years, I left the department as a lieutenant and for the next twenty-two years worked as a
Special Agent for three federal law enforcement agencies,
retiring in 1986 as the Agent in Charge of an office of the Drug
Enforcement Administration (DEA). Several years
after my retirement from DEA, I was asked to take a position with the South Carolina
Department of Corrections where I developed and directed all
aspects of the newly created Security Threat Group (STG) Unit. I held
this position until 1998 when I again retired and began consulting in
gang identification. I offer this bit of
background information because of the changes that I have seen in
corrections over the past fifty years.
In those early years, officers had no means of
protecting themselves. There was no mace or other personal chemical agents
(tear gas was available for major disturbances or individual cells);
no tasers; no beeper alarms, no stab proof vests and officers did
not carry handcuffs or batons. If they got into trouble, they had
to rely on their wits and ability to survive until help arrived.
It is amazing how so many officers in this profession are
so willing to run towards trouble......not away from it. As
mentioned above, in 1961, I and four fellow officers were in a riot
involving 125 inmates in the recreation yard. We were all injured
and we were all hospitalized - one officer was shanked, one was hit in
the head with a softball bat (he never fully recovered from the injury),
and the rest of us were beaten, kicked, and stomped. It was a
sight for sore eyes to realize that the cavalry had arrived and was
taking control. How do you spell relief? H-E-L-P H-A-S
A-R-R-I-V-E-D.
This page is dedicated to the men and women in
the profession of corrections who put their life on the line day
after day and to their fallen comrades who have made the ultimate sacrifice. On this page you will find articles
relating to the corrections profession as well as information that
hopefully will assist you in your daily duties on the job.
Good luck and above all stay
safe................
Correction
Officers Memorial Wall
The corrections profession is becoming
more demanding
If
you would like to work in the corrections field, begin by earning an
A new E-book is online and is must reading for
Corrections
Scars and Bars Click cover above to order Barry Evert, an experienced Sergeant with the
California Department of Corrections and a prolific author, has written
an outstanding book for officers in the corrections profession. When I
first read the book and was writing the foreword for the book, I
commented to Barry that the book was a sure bet to become the “bible”
for corrections officers.
Scars and Bars is a tool for
the new correctional professional to use as a guide to his/her
integration into prison. The book is meant as a guide only; a tool to
learn from the mistakes of others. It is intended to help fill in the
blanks and answer questions that the academy may not have addressed.
Scars and Bars at any price is
worth every penny. It might be compared to an insurance policy that may
save you or a co-worker from injury or even death. Currently Scars and
Bars is available as an E-book, in PDF format only. It can be
saved to your PC or laptop and read at any time. Later, it will be
published in a hard cover. The E-book cost is
$9.99 - Click the picture above to order
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Corrections Associations Employment and Wages
Union News Law Suits and Court Decisions D A non-profit organization for the
well-being of corrections staff and families Listed below are links to dozens of DWCO articles concerning
the job, marriage, hazards, teamwork and more. Each link is a
long list of articles written by the person(s) indicated. Training for correctional officers Officers crossing the line - charges and convictions Prisons in the news Prison gangs in the news Prison riots, lockdowns, assaults, and escapes Corrections Video News
Prison videos - Caution: some scenes may have profanity or may
contain violence. A very short commercial may precede some videos. P
Prison Nation
HAVING A BAD DAY???
Gangs OR Us You are also invited to visit the
This page was last updated on
01/17/2010
[return to top]
Site Design by Matschca Design, Inc.
Corrections
- Law enforcement behind the walls.
Inmate
cell extractions were no piece of cake. There was no riot gear, no
helmets, or no shields. We used improvised shields by using canvas pads which
served as a mattress in seclusion. The take down was not
exactly textbook as it is today. We formed behind the officer
holding the mattress and rushed into the cell, shoving the inmate down
and smothering him. As dangerous
as the job was in those early years, most of the inmates had some degree
of respect for the officers as well as many of the other inmates.
I believe this respect was created by the older inmates, "the old cons,"
who kept the younger inmates in line for the most part. The older
cons usually had a reputation of sorts and the younger inmates quickly
learned to respect that. There were no gangs in the system at that time.
Through the years, the profession has
been slow to gain the respect that it deserves from our law abiding
society. Correctional
officers, or detention officers have been called everything imaginable;
frequently through ignorance but mostly through disrespect. CO's have
been known as "hacks," "screws", "bulls." "yard dogs," "turnkeys,"
"guards," and many more names that can't be mentioned here.
In today's world of prisons and jails and well as on the streets, there
is no respect for authority. Inmates as well as street criminals
have absolutely no regard for human life. Much of this has been
brought about by the street and prison gangs, who, in their attempts to
earn a reputation, will assault or kill for absolutely no reason.
- The one complete resource for Law Enforcement
online.
Telephone - 803-345-2600
All Original Content Copyright 1999-2010 Robert Walker
