Professionalism In Corrections

1145 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Judicial decision making

This question is hard for me to answer. I think professionalism is important but only to a certain extent within the corrections system. I think It is important that corrections officers are respectful and treat inmates fairly. "A true Measure of professionals is their attitude and behavior toward the people they serve" (Kohnke, 2001). Having said that, the job of a corrections officer is extremely challenging and dangerous. I don't think a corrections officers job is to babysit and cater to the needs of inmates. There job is to ensue the inmates don't kill each other or escape. But by being professional and treating inmates with respect and fairness, without being walked all over, a corrections officer can help to keep inmate officer tensions …show more content…

Perhaps nothing needs to be done to increase professionalism in the corrections setting. Although in a recent question, we spoke on contraband and i made note how most contraband was brought in by corrections officers. so if i had to pick one way in which the professionalism of corrections officers needed to be increased, it would be in taking pride in their job and not bringing contraband into their facilities.
After completing this weeks read, I was very excited to answer this question. I would like to talk about several major court cases heard in the supreme court that related to inmate rights and my personal feelings and opinions about how the effect the corrections system. Three very important supreme court cases that relate to inmate rights are: Whitley Vs. Albers (1986), Bell Vs. Wolfish (1979), and Hudson Vs. Palmer (1984). I chose all three of these cases because while I worked in a correctional facility, I benefited from all three of these case rulings as do all corrections officers. The first case I will discuss is Bell Vs. Wolfish (1979). Bell Vs. Wolfish states that unannounced cell searches are necessary for security and order …show more content…

I was able to find three legal services offered and a very interesting supreme court case as well that pertains to legal services provided to inmates. The three legal services are the Innocence projects, Grievance process, and Corrections ombudsman. The Innocence projects is a service provided by the state to inmates in which cases have questions that remain regarding the legality of their convictions (Siegel/Bartollas). The second legal service provided to prisoners is the Grievance Process. The Grievance Process is a formalized arrangement in which inmates can register their complaints about the conditions of their confinement (Siegel/Bartollas). The idea behind this is good, but I when I worked in corrections the system was abused by inmates. We would be flooded with multiple Grievances every day stating things like, there steak was over cooked, or their sheets were not made properly by housekeeping, or very serious and fake allegations of abuse by officers, that would quickly be dispelled via video evidence from security cameras. Often times, new inmates will mess with new

Show More
Related

  • Bounds V Smith Case Summary

    541 Words  | 2 Pages

    The courts found that the respondent's rights had been violated because the state had not provided proper research facilities. The court charged the department of correction with finding a way to provide appropriate legal service for inmates. They said the program should be economic accessible.They said it could be a law student, lawyers or public defenders. Also they said they should have access to law libraries. The state responded by setting up several libraries.The respondents wanted libraries at every prison.The courts founded the state plan to be fair.The prison got the the Federal Law Enforcement Assistance Administration (LEAA) for a grant to cover 90% of the cost of setting up the libraries and training a librarian and inmate clerks. The state said this would benefit all

    Read More

  • Analysis of Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing

    1210 Words  | 3 Pages

    The picture this book paints would no doubt bother corrections professionals in prisons where prisoner-staff relationships and officer solidarity are more developed. In training, Conover is told that "the most important thing you can learn here is to communicate with inmates." And the Sing Sing staff who enjoy the most success and fulfillment i...

    Read More

  • Sandin v. Conner and Whitley v. Albers

    545 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the case of Sandin v. Conner, DeMont Conner, an inmate at a maximum security correctional facility in Hawaii, was subjected to a strip search in 1987. During the search he directed angry and foul language at the officer. Conner was charged with high misconduct and sentenced to 30 days of segregation by the adjustment committee. Conner was not allowed to present witnesses in his defense. Conner completed the 30-day segregation sentence, after which he requested a review of his case. Upon review, prison administration found no evidence to support the misconduct claim. The State District Court backed the decision, but the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals found that Sandin had a liberty interest in remaining free from disciplinary segregation. This case is significant because it confronts the question of which constitutional rights individuals retain when they are incarcerated. In Sandin v. Conner, the Supreme Court ultimately ruled that prisoners have a right to due process only when “atypical and significant deprivation” has occurred. Prisons must now be vigilant in protecting the rights of inmates. It is a delicate matter in the sense that, when an individual enters prison, their rights to liberty are by and large being forfeited. The rights in question are important to prisoners because prisons are closed environments where by nature their freedoms are already very limited. They need a well-defined set of rights so that prisons do not unduly infringe on their liberty. Without court intervention, prison administrators would likely not have allowed this particular right, as it adds another layer of bureaucracy that can be seen as interfering with the efficiency of their job. Also, it could lead to a glut of prisoners claiming violations of their rights under the court ruling.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Guarding Sing Sing By Ted Conover

    1496 Words  | 3 Pages

    The jobs of correctional officer are some times overlooked. Correctional officers are playing a huge role in society because they need to perform important tasks. A correctional officer’s job is not easy and can become very stressful at times. Correctional officers are required to enforce and keep order, supervise inmates, help counsel offenders, search inmate cells for contraband, and also report on inmate actions. Correctional officers need to contain power over the prisoners in order to enforce the rules of the prison, or else the prison will not function correctly. In the book, Conover says, “The essential relationship inside a prison is the one between a guard and an inmate…the guard, it is thought, wields all the power, but in truth the inmate has power too” (Conover, p. 207). In the book, the importance of power the prisoner’s hold can be seen through the sudden increase of prisoners, the Stanford Prison Experiment and through the contraband they make.

    Read More

  • How Are Correctional Officers Treated In Prison?

    1746 Words  | 4 Pages

    The way correction officers are treated in prison is dreadful. “A corrections officer was seriously burned Monday morning in an attack by an inmate at the Green Bay Correctional Institution” (Roberts, 2016). This topic interest me because most of my life my brother has described the working conditions of correction officers in prison. I remember him telling me how one officer had his finger bitten off by an inmate. Correction officers are the guards who work in prison to enforce prisoners, so that inmates do not find themselves constantly in trouble. In addition, the officers ensure inmates’ safety. Despite the fact that the officers want to secure the inmate 's safety, people are unaware of the hardships officers face every day. A great deal of the rigorous challenges guards go through are never mentioned on the news or make it to newspapers. Correction officers are rarely mentioned within society, even though they are a huge part of the law enforcement. There is a

    Read More

  • Examples Of Verbal De-Escalation

    660 Words  | 2 Pages

    In order for this to happen each employee has to make sure the employee next to them is using proper verbal de-escalation skills and most importantly treating clients with respect. I use to remind new officers in corrections that they needed to treat the inmates like they would want one of their family members treated if they were incarcerated for any reason. What we need to understand is everyone has someone on the outside that cares about them; and their expectation is that person is being treated in a fair and respectful

    Read More

  • Correctional Officer Scenarios

    1442 Words  | 3 Pages

    Being an officer who protects and serves is already quite terrifying. Having to be with inmates that have killed or assaulted people are the worst of the worst. A correctional officer has big responsibilities to keep themselves safe and their families safe when they go home later that day. You have to think about what goes through the minds of the inmates when you have to keep them in check, or watch over them. Do they want to kill you, your family, show up at your house.

    Read More

  • correctional officer

    961 Words  | 2 Pages

    A typical day for a Correctional Officer would be the preparing of inmates for court appearances. They also receive new inmates to the facility brought in by the Sheriffs Department. Each new inmate must be photographed and fingerprinted upon immediate arrival to the Pre Trial Centre. They are then stripped and fully searched inside and out. With that ...

    Read More

  • Role Of The Criminal Justice Professional

    816 Words  | 2 Pages

    Correctional institutions in the country have made rehabilitation a top priority. Most prisons offer substance abuse, domestic violence, anger management, and sex offender treatment programs. All programs are staffed by a wide variety of counselors, certified instructors, and doctors. Correctional employees are required to attained training and some are selected to become certified in some of the counseling fields as well. "Research conducted by Doris MacKenzie and others find that rehabilitation programs that have shown to be effective" (Miceli,

    Read More

  • Correctional Trends In Prisons

    1150 Words  | 3 Pages

    Correctional ideologies have contributed greatly to the present correctional trends in the United States. With all of the correctional ideologies contributing in some way, some greater than others, the United States corrections has seen many problems. One such problem is the steady increase in incarceration rates. In result, the prison facilities have become overcrowded and hard to manage. As Dawe from New York City’s Department of Corrections said, “We are so understaffed and so overcrowded across our prisons, it’s miraculous that we can handle it,”(New Week Global, 2014). In fact, according to the American Federation of Government Employees, Federally-operated facilities have grown by 41% while correctional workers have only increased by 19% (New Week Global, 2014). The increase in the prison population rates is due to five contributing factors: (1) increased arrests and more likely incarceration, (2) tougher sentencing, (3) prison construction, (4) the war on drugs, and (5) state and local politics.

    Read More

  • Professionalism In The Health Field

    688 Words  | 2 Pages

    There are many attributes that contribute to being professional. The many that stick out in my mind are responsibility and accountability, leadership, honor and integrity, respect, and caring compassion and communication. All of these attributes pertain to the professional work environment in the own important way. When you are a professional you need to have responsibility and accountability. This means you have to demonstrate awareness of your own limitations, and identify developmental needs and approaches for improvements. You care for yourself appropriately and you present yourself in an appropriate manner (demeanor, dress, and hygiene). You recognize and report errors and poor behavior in peers. You have to take responsibility for appropriate share o...

    Read More

  • Prison Rehabilitation

    1186 Words  | 3 Pages

    With the substantial increase in prison population and various changes that plague correctional institutions, government agencies are finding that what was once considered a difficult task to provide educational programs, inmate security and rehabilitation programs are now impossible to accomplish. From state to state, each correctional organization is coupled with financial problems that have depleted the resources to assist in providing the quality of care in which the judicial system demands from these state and federal prisons. Judges, victims, and prosecuting attorneys entrust that once an offender is turned over to the correctional system, that the offender will receive the punishment imposed by the court, be given services that aid in the rehabilitation of those offenders that one day will be released back into society, and to act as a deterrent to other criminals contemplating criminal acts that could result in their incarceration. Has our nation’s correctional system finally reached it’s critical collapse, and as a result placed American citizens in harm’s way to what could result in a plethora of early releases of inmates to reduce the large prison populations in which independent facilities are no longer able to manage? Could these problems ultimately result in a drastic increase in person and property crimes in which even our own law enforcement is ineffective in controlling these colossal increases in crime against society?

    Read More

  • Correctional Officer Roles

    1035 Words  | 3 Pages

    A day in the life of a correctional officer is often easily overlooked. Not realizing or knowing the specifics that go into what it takes to interact daily with incarcerated inmates is one reason people are able to go about their lives, not wondering or thinking about how those inmates are managed. I had the pleasure of interviewing a man named Steve from my church who worked in corrections for sixteen months starting in 2008. At that time, Steve said it was not required to attend the correctional officer academy, but it has since become a requirement to pass the academy. Based off some things Steve mentioned to me, corrections officers have one of the toughest jobs in the criminal justice system. Having to constantly work with inmates

    Read More

  • Issues in Corrections

    851 Words  | 2 Pages

    Prison was designed to house and isolate criminals away from the society in order for our society and the people within it to function without the fears of the outlaws. The purpose of prison is to deter and prevent people from committing a crime using the ideas of incarceration by taking away freedom and liberty from those individuals committed of crimes. Prisons in America are run either by the federal, states or even private contractors. There are many challenges and issues that our correctional system is facing today due to the nature of prisons being the place to house various types of criminals. In this paper, I will address and identify three major issues that I believe our correctional system is facing today using my own ideas along with the researches from three reputable outside academic sources.

    Read More

  • Prison Overcrowding

    2356 Words  | 5 Pages

    In the 1970s and 1980s, a massive amount of inmates began fillin up the United States prison systems. This huge rate of growth in this short amount of time, has greatly contributed to the prison overcrowding that the United States faces today. In fact, the prisons are still filled to the seams. This enormous flood of inmates has made it practically impossible for prison officials to keep up with their facilities and supervise their inmates. One of the main reasons why many prisons have become overcrowded is because of states’ harsh criminal laws and parole practices (Cohen). “One in every 100 American adults is behind bars, the highest incarceration rate in the world” (Cohen). The amount of inmates in corrections systems, throughout the nation, sky-rocketed to 708 percent between 1972 and 2008. Today, there are about 145,000 inmates occupying areas only designed for 80,000 (Posner). Peter Mosko, “an assistant professor of Law, Police Science and Criminal Justice at New York’s John Jay College of Criminal Justice” (Frazier) stated, “America, with 2.3 million people behind bars, has more prisoners than soldiers” (Frazier). There have been studies that have shown “there are more men and women in prison than ever before. The number of inmates grew by an average of 1,600 a week. The U. S. has the highest rate of crime in the world” (Clark). Because of this influx in inmates, many prisoners’ rights groups have filed lawsuits charging that “overcrowded prisons violate the Constitution’s 8th Amendment ban on cruel and unusual punishment” (Clark). It is clear that the United States corrections system needs to be reformed in order to eliminate this problem. Prison overcrowding is a serious issue in society due to the fact it affects prison ...

    Read More

More about Professionalism In Corrections

Open Document