Correctional Officer

Correctional Officer

Bob Walsh

Stockton, CA

Male, 60

I worked for the California state system, starting as a Correctional Officer and retiring as a Lieutenant in 2005. I now write for the PacoVilla blog which is concerned with what could broadly be called The Correctional System.

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455 Questions

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Last Answer on February 10, 2022

Best Rated

Who do officers report to for personals or bathroom breaks

Asked by leon over 8 years ago

Generally speaking no one.  Most posts-work areas have staff bathrooms.  It is sort of an OSHA thing.  If you have a job assignment that allows or requires you to move around a lot (like yard officer) you just wander over to the staff bathroom while you are wandering around your area.  It is a good idea to let a co-worker know if you are disappearing into the head for a while in case something jumps off while you are there so they are not worried about where you are when they count noses, but that's about it usually.

I like a co but I'm not sure I be good for his job. I have past and I would not want to wast are time if it going to be a issue. In my past I been to prison and in known but he don't work where I went and I not on paper. I meat him at Walmart .

Asked by Offinder chick over 9 years ago

As far as I know there is no LEGAL problem with a Correctional Officer getting involved with an ex-felon AS LONG AS THAT EX-FELON IS NO LONGER ON PROBATION OR PAROLE.  Also of course you would, for practical purposes, have to let him know about your past.  It would be a problem for access for firearms and ammunition, assuming he owns a gun.  You are (presumably) prohibited from possessing or having access to guns or ammunition.  Whether there would be some informal kickback against him, that is another question altogether.

Hello, I am applying to be a correctional officer in AZ. This will be my first interview and I am trying to get as much information as possible. What advice would you give someone applying & what are key points of being a CO. I want to do this right.

Asked by Anna over 9 years ago

As an entry level employee they will be much more interested in your general background than in your specific knowledge of the job.  It is very likely they have a web site and it is possible they have a new employee orientation packet or even a prison rule book on line.  Being familiar with this sort of thing is not necessary, but it certainly doesn't hurt.  IN addition being able to speak standard English coherently and write a decent report are both very desirable skills.  In some places they want you to write a brief narrative at the interview site, bring it in with you and read it out load to the panel.  Good luck.

I'm currently going under the process of becoming a CO but my question is will I be disqualified due to the fact that my fiance is in prison . ?

Asked by tina over 8 years ago

Not in California.  Might in other jurisdictions.  Also you would almost certainly NOT be able to work in whatever facility your fiancé is locked up in as that is an obvious security issue.  If you fail to report the relationship and they find out about it later that could get you fired.

What is the most rewarding part as a CO?

Asked by Esmer over 8 years ago

General speaking (IMHO) people gravitate to this line of work because they are process oriented, the structure appeals to them.  Once in a while you get to do something that is THE RIGHT THING just because it is the right thing.  During the time I ran the reception center I had three new arrivals tell me "This is a screw-up.  I shouldn't be here."  All of them were telling the truth.  It would have gotten taken care of eventually but I got to fix it promptly because of the position I was in and because I choose to believe them at that point in the process.  It wasn't all rainbows and sunshine, but it was nice.

1. What did you like/dislike about your job?
2. Did you consider your job to be dangerous?
3. Would you recommend a career in corrections to a new criminal justice university graduate?
4. How would you say that your job "mattered" in the CJ process?

Asked by Tony over 9 years ago

I felt like I was preforming a valuable service for society at large, and I was fairly well compensated for it.  Yes, the job was dangerous.  Not ridiculously so, but you could not go thru the day with your brain on auto-pilot.  Even if you were careful you would, from time to time, find yourself in situations that got physical.  That's part of the job.  Yes, I would still recommend a job in that field.  It is much more "political" now than it was in my day, but I would still recommend it, just not as highly as I might have 15 years ago.  The job is definitely important in the whole process.  Assuming you allow that locking up bad guys is part of the process there must be somebody to both keep an eye on them and provide them with needed services.  Without that aspect the system would come apart fairly quickly.

What specific role(s) do you see for a Correctional Counselor in the prison system? What attributes do you feel Correctional Counselors should have?

Asked by Neal Bracken almost 10 years ago

They are primarily paper pushers.  They prepare board reports, pre-release reports and stuff like that.  Their principle attribute must be the ability to think critically and write clearly and concisely.  they must have a good understanding of "the system" and how it works.