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chiquita_bandita · Nov 5, 2007, 10:02 PM

For anyone who happens to know the answers...

Do prison inmates ever really try to locate corrections officers (to "kick their a**") once they're released or are those typically empty threats made to CO's? I'm guessing it's empty threats. But what might a former inmate do if he saw a CO he knew on the outside? Would it be fair to say only real obsessive, possibly mentally ill inmate might actually seek revenge on a CO? These questions are assuming the CO was not involved in any kind of "shenanigans", was never abusive or overstepped his bounds, etc.

Say a CO was to use deadly force on an inmate (assume it's warranted), would he or his family be in danger of retaliation from the inmates family, friends or gang members on the outside?

What does it feel like to be finally released from prison? Besides the obvious... eat a good meal, have sex, see family and friends, drink/do drugs/smoke, what else do people do or look forward to doing upon release?

Thanks in advance for any answers!

excon · Nov 13, 2007, 07:50 AM

Hello c:

Well, I can only guess (snicker, snicker). My very first day out, I kind of hid in a motel room. I was scared of the traffic. We didn't have traffic in the slam.

Cool CO's don't get hurt. However, I would think abusive ones need to watch their backs. The REAL abusive ones absolutely DO need to watch their backs - and rightfully so.

Personally, I enjoyed a full night's sleep without having a flashlight beamed into my eyes several times during the night just to make sure I wasn't a dummy.

excon

shygrneyzs · Nov 13, 2007, 08:00 AM

My daughter's father should be here posting, as many times as he has been in that situation. Yes, sometimes that happens but for those who want to stay outside the walls, it makes sense to think twice. Now there are some CO's who would deserve a whooping and the one who gave it would deserve a medal but what are the consequences?
I do know that when my oldest brother was released he went after the CO who sexually assaulted him.

You ask what it feels like to finally be released from prison? What do you think? You mentioned drinking and doing drugs - ummm... do you want to go back to prison for that? Depending on your crime, staying away from drugs and alcohol could mandated.

kindj · Nov 13, 2007, 12:37 PM

My best friend has been a CO for almost 20 years, and he's had no problems whatsoever. He's not the abusive type, though, as he believes that whatever happened yesterday happened yesterday and today is a brand new day. Yeah, he has to get rough with the inmates sometimes, but sometimes the inmate's choices neccesitate such actions. He always keeps it professional and never takes anything personally. He's seen a whole bunch of former inmates out and about, and has never been confronted. So for him, I guess it's no big deal.

chiquita_bandita · Nov 13, 2007, 01:48 PM

Hey. Thanks for the answers.

excon, interesting comment about getting a peaceful night's sleep. I had been thinking of only the obvious big things a person would look forqard to, not thnking of all the smaller annoyances inmates deal with day to day. Thanks. Oh... also, how different did the world look upon your release, and how long did it take you to get accustomed to all the new stuff like new cars, music, TV, deaths/births? I mean, I know you can read and listen to music in prison, but still there has to be a shock to actually walk out there in a "new" world, right? Of course, I don't know how long you were in for, so forgive me for assuming it was a long enough time for things to be so different, if that's not the case!

By chance, do any of you know what the main differences are between working in a federal prison, a state-run prison and a privately owned prison? Mainly the differences in working conditions and the different stuff you'd deal with from different types of inmates.

jasondbel · Nov 13, 2007, 01:56 PM

Federal prison more time but a piece of cake. State prison less time but higher chances of being someone's girl. Friend of mine kind of had a choice 10 yrs fed time five yrs state. He chose 10 yrs fed.

chiquita_bandita · Nov 13, 2007, 10:25 PM

OK, so what makes a federal prison easier exactly?

jasondbel · Nov 13, 2007, 11:54 PM

More relaxed of an environment because of such amenities as AC or Heater. Warm water . Better food.

Doc_Jim · Jan 6, 2008, 05:45 PM

The type of inmates differ as to the institution. Federal prisons are usually full of non-violent offenders. Those who are violent are housed in such places as Marion. In that setting, the conditions are much the same as in state prison units. States usually have violent and non-violent offenders and their behavior determines the level of confinement. Most state prisons are considered mini-max units, having various levels of security. Minimum security prisoners are utilized in the unit services such as cooking, cleaning, hauling, maintenance, etc. Private prisons are utilized for medium to minimum security prisoners.

As to danger to COs from former inmates, there is little history of such attacks. Most former inmates wish to have nothing to do with anything that reminds them of prison life. That includes being in places where COs live or hang out.

Fr_Chuck · Jan 6, 2008, 06:04 PM

There are all types of inmate, a correctional officers biggest issue is the inmates trying to get some dirt on a correctional officer, so most important, don't lie on your application, so there is nothing to black mail.
As a CO don't break the rules, or a inmate can use it against you to blackmail you.

Also watch out, one of my good fiends on the job, lost their job and actually had to serve time because they got invovled in a girl on the out side, and guess what it was a girl friend of one of the inmates, so they black mailed him into bringing drugs in.. Then turned the guard in when they got caught to get out of trouble.

I worked some of the worst prisons in the US Statesville and Juliet in Illinois and GA State Prison in GA. And they are tough, guards getting attacked were a regular thing,
In GA it was not uncommom to have things thrown at you from the upper tiers, light toilet paper, inmates flooding were just everyday activities.

Good guard, bad guard it did not matter, the worst were in cell blocks that were almost to the level of animals, they would throw human waste at anyone coming in the cell block, it would often take 4 or 5 staff members to move them.
And the mental health wards were even worst,

So yes officers in some prisons do get attacked for no reason other than they are guards. Now in normal high security and lower, with open cell blocks, then only the hard guards have the most trouble, but often the "nice" guards are considered weak and they try to take advantage of their good nature.

I will also disagree slightly with Doc Jim, the security level of inmates working in cleaning or cooking or maintence may be high security in some of the very high security prisons,

For example I had to pick a orderly to clean the cell block, to be in that cell block you had to have killed at least one police or correctional officer and all were high max inmates, And often we had med secuity inmates doing all the yard and kitchen details.