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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Last Answer on February 10, 2022

Best Rated

Can a lieutenant ban someone from a prison with no real reason without the wardens consent.

Asked by Britt about 9 years ago

It would depend on the jurisdiction I expect.  The Watch Commander, who in California is a Lieutenant, has operational control of the prison during non-business hours.  I suspect it is the same in many other jurisdictions.  The watch commander can ban a visitor pending review by higher authority, though must have at least some sort of reasoning to do so and there would be paperwork attached to such an action .  Banning an employee from the grounds takes a higher authority than the watch commander (again in California.)

Thanks for reply! So is it better to make the rent payments, or would they just keep asking for more and/or not respect me? Rent payment goes into their commissary I assume? Just curious, no plans to go to prison.... :-)

Asked by Alex about 10 years ago

That would depend a lot on circumstances. 

Do I have a drivers license to be a correctional officer in South Carolina?

Asked by alias almost 11 years ago

I have no idea.  However, in most states it is a peace officer position and virtually all peace officers have and need a driver's license.  So my educated guess is YES. 

How have U.S. Supreme Court decisions about corrections impacted your job/your life?

Asked by EVJ almost 11 years ago

Lately not much as I have been retired for close to ten years now.  The biggie in California is the population cap which has forced the state to release about 40,000 felons from custody.  The federal takeover of the inmate health care program has also caused operational problems within the department.

Do you have inmates take their shoes off when you make them go through the jail body scanner?

Asked by Quinn20 about 10 years ago

My experience is in a PRISON, not a JAIL.  There is a difference.  In prison, the answer is YES, when we ran them through the METAL DETECTOR (not body scanner) they had to take their shoes off.. 

How effective do you feel probation/parole is? why or why not?

Asked by cody over 9 years ago

It depends.  Assuming the former bad guy is genuinely trying to go along with the program AND the people who are supervising and helping him are genuinely interested in doing their job, it can be very effective.  It has both a carrot and a stick.  Under the current economic conditions (poor job prospects) the carrot is sometimes lacking.  With the current prison and jail crowding the stick is sometimes underutilized.  I guess my final answer is that in theory it is fine, in actual practice, especially in California and especially of late, it is lacking.

What kind of physical test do i need to do when becoming a corrections officer

Asked by Tracy almost 10 years ago

Good question.  I don't have a good answer any more.  You need to meet the height-weight ratio.  There is no minimum height requirement, there may be a maximum one but I don't think so.  You need to have decent hearing and reasonable (but not perfect) vision without corrective lenses.  (You can't wear glasses under a gas mask and you need to be able to function while wearing one.)  I don't believe there is a color vision test.  I think there is a physical agility test, but I don't know what it is.  Sorry I couldn't be more help.