RC & NG, is your corrections facility safety minded?

2015-09-13T14:46:44-04:00

Im really just looking to see if all corrections environments are the same as the state prison I work at.

Are your supervisors and safety & security team doing what you think they should be when it comes to the safety and security of the instutution, employees and inmates?

I know everyone has that frame of mind who cares about the inmates, they killed their mom, or raped their neighbor. but we all know we have to maintain their safety as well.

Do your supervisors handle inmates assigned locations properly? Are there known conflicting gang issues housed together? Are there suicidals being left untreated or unwatched? Do inmates go to solitary confinement when they should or is it blown off?

I wonder because just a few weeks ago, I was running a pod housing 159 inmates alone. It came count time, every inmate in their cell for 100% accountability. I made my first round counting, had all accounted for, I went back through to finish my lock check and verify my count before calling it in. I come up one short the second time. I sighed thinking I miscounted, so I went back through each cell, opened every door and had every inmate stand so I could count. Each cell I wrote down on paper to add up so I knew I didnt miscount.

The third time, all was accounted for. I was happy then. Called in to operations to give them my count. It was good.

Later in the day, as I got relieved in the pod, I went over my security footage in pod as I do every day before I went home. It come count time on camera and I noticed after my first count, an inmate popped his door open and left his cell. These pods are huge so you cant always hear everything. I seen myself do my second count, he was still out. After I passed his door, he popped it again, resecured his door and went in.

After this footage I went in, pulled him and his celly out and searched the cell. Found nothing, and I tore that cell up. So I went ahead and wrote an incident statement, a disciplinary report, and pulled the tape and secured it to a chain of ecudence form and turned it in. He never got put in the hole; because the shift supervisor didnt want to move him. According to policy, thats an automatic trip to the hole for tampering with a security device. He could have just as easily popped that door and come after me. They still refused to lock him up. This is not an isolated incident. This kind of thing happens often throughout the compound that houses 1800 inmates.

Anyone else run into issues like this?
I love my job, but I want to come home everyday too. Now that inmate knows he can pop his door and get away with it.

Response by LTC Stephen F. made Sep 13 at 2015 3:04 PM

2015-09-13T15:04:00-04:00

SGT Private RallyPoint Member I recommend you tag a few other groups such as Employment, Federal Bureau of Prisons.

Response by SPC Nathan Acreman made Sep 15 at 2015 10:36 AM

2015-09-15T10:36:18-04:00

I work at a county jail, while we do little things constantly to keep deputies safe, I don't think we are nearly as safe as we can be. In my honest opinion though, the greatest risk to anyone's safety is the CO'S mouth. That one area my jail needs to really work.

Response by SPC Jesse Montemayor made Sep 16 at 2015 6:18 PM

2015-09-16T18:18:49-04:00

I work in Missouri Dept of Corrections at Western Missouri Correctional Center in Cameron, Mo and this place is no where near safety minded! The institution is very short hand and some staff are over worked. The K2 Synthetic marijuana laced chinese potpourri and is really messing the Inmate population up! We had 30 OD'S and 3 deaths from it ! We have guys constantly on Suicide watch!

Response by PO3 Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 23 at 2015 3:23 AM

2015-09-23T03:23:12-04:00

I have been on Rikers Island for 19 years, and in that time I have watched dramatic changes in not only Departmental Policy but, inmate behavior. Inmates have no respect for officers, and the Department has adopted a strict hands off mentality towards even the most violent offenders. In fact our new use of force directive states that strikes to the head are strictly forbidden, and disciplinary action will be taken against any officer who "intentionally or unintentionally" strikes an inmate in the facial area. They are even toying with the idea that pepper spray should only be aimed towards the chest area and not the face.....

This is the new lay of the land. Everyone is afraid to do what must be done for fear of losing their jobs. Supervisors don't want any problems so instead of risking a use of force for a non-compliant inmate... They pacify them by giving them what ever they want. Some inmates are even paid $25 a week by the department... Not to work mind you.... Just for not being infracted..... Others are given pizza parties and movies. As an officer I am thoroughly disgusted with the department I now work for, moreover, I am ashamed to call myself a Correction Officer..... Now when people ask what I do on Rikers, I tell them I'm a plumber..... Just saying.....

Response by TSgt Thomas Monaghan made Sep 29 at 2015 11:34 AM

2015-09-29T11:34:03-04:00

You can't fix lazy supervision notify your union of your concerns

Response by SPC Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 30 at 2017 10:56 PM

2017-04-30T22:56:06-04:00

Yea here in Massachusetts I've been working for the state corrections 8yrs and it's the same thing. Administration can careless about what's going on. Working 3yrs in investigations with them I've seen disciplinary reports come through left and right and things never really were dealt with. All in all what I think about is we work in the housing units with the inmates around while they sit in the office not wanting to deal with anything officer or inmate wise. It's not only your facility it's nation wide.

Response by SFC David Reid, M.S, PHR, SHRM-CP, DTM made Aug 19 at 2019 7:39 PM

2019-08-19T19:39:10-04:00

That's a good question I think they are more so, today!