Corrections Officer

**justabill** · Posted On: 9/17/2007 3:52pm

Hello,
I am scheduled to take the test for correction officer this weekend. I was wondering if any of you out there in Bullshido land are current or former COs, and would you recommend this career to another? Also any pros and cons (no pun intended) of the job?

Thanks!

**kwoww** · Posted On: 9/17/2007 4:42pm

Don't know specifics, but it's probably a tough job.

And good luck with the test.

**Matt W.** · Posted On: 9/17/2007 4:53pm

Well, I was a CO in Washington before I became a CCO (aka Probation Officer). It was a good experience and I learned a lot. The shift work sucked, of course. So did working nights. But those are things that will vary from place to place and depend on experience (your schedule's going to get better the longer you've been in it).

Also, you'll find it is a great starting place to move on to other opportunities. I used to want to be a cop, but after I got into corrections I discovered there were all these other avenues of advancement, including this sweet gig I have now. I get to do most of the things that made me want to be a cop, but with banker's hours and weekends/holidays off.

What kind of place would you be at? Jail or prison? If prison, what level of security? Male or female? All those things will influence your experience.

**SFGOON** · Posted On: 9/17/2007 5:32pm

Of course, there are the negatives, like getting faeces or flaming toilet paper thrown at you. They will also stick you with needles, wipe urine, semen or further faeces on you, shoot you with a crossbow fabricated from newspaper and an elastic band, and on occasion stab you with a sharpened toothbrush.

Other than that, it's a rewarding career that may lead to a great job at gitmo.

**justabill** · Posted On: 9/17/2007 5:38pm

Thanks for the responses. If accepted, I could be placed in one of three facilities. The first is a maximum security prison, the second a minimum security and the last a DWI center. Not sure on gender, but I would imagine male.

**justabill** · Posted On: 9/17/2007 5:40pm

Originally Posted by SFGOON

Of course, there are the negatives, like getting faeces or flaming toilet paper thrown at you. They will also stick you with needles, wipe urine, semen or further faeces on you, shoot you with a crossbow fabricated from newspaper and an elastic band, and on occasion stab you with a sharpened toothbrush.

Other than that, it's a rewarding career that may lead to a great job at gitmo.

Some people pay for that stuff in NYC, laugh.

**kwoww** · Posted On: 9/17/2007 5:41pm

Which do you think you wanna go to?

Serious question.

**justabill** · Posted On: 9/17/2007 5:44pm

Originally Posted by kwoww

Which do you think you wanna go to?

Serious question.

At first I'd want to start at the DWI facility or Minimum security to get a feel for the job.

**Matt W.** · Posted On: 9/17/2007 5:57pm

I was in a Med/Min security prison. Never had any of those bad things happen to me, though I was cursed at some. Heh. Of course, we had a "direct supervision" model so everyone had to have a certain level of respect for each other.

I've been told that in many ways the higher security gigs are easier because the dudes are all locked down most of the time. But those are also the situations where they're more likely to go ape-**** on you too. So there's pros and cons (no pun intended).

**Ryno** · Posted On: 9/17/2007 7:09pm

I worked in a Juvenile Hall, mostly Max Security for 3 years. I didn't like the impact that it was having on me socially. 0230 to 1230 shift work sucks. Dealing with criminals all day long really made me trust people less. It eventually led to field probation work, which was better, but still not my cup of tea. Once again, dealing with criminals more than normal folks just got annoying.

You definitely need to have a certain kind of temperament if you want to work in corrections and succeed. I could do it, and didn't have some of the anger/power trip issues that some staff members developed, but it still didn't exactly make me happy.

What I did enjoy was having some kind of positive impact on the kids. I liked running a tight well-scheduled program. I didn't mind writing reports, and making recommendations to Probation Officers and DAs when they'd call down to the units to ask how kids were doing. (This could sometimes affect their sentencing.) I'll also admit to liking the occasional action. Jumping into a gang fight with only 2 other staff members, a pair of cuffs, and a belt alarm will definitely get the adrenaline pumping. Other than that, overtime was plentiful.