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Jimd
04-21-2006, 01:32 PM
Well, yesterday was eventful in the Armpit of America.....

Inmates on D-Block decided that they weren't going to lock into their cells at lock-up time in the morning. Now some time before this consensus had been arrived at, the D-Block sergeant decided to take a stroll (to where no one really knew) for about an hour, so he wasn't there to supervise anything.

At any rate, I saw a group of Miscellaneous Officers (Extra COs that are posted outside the Operations Center for Miscellaneous/Emergency duties) walking quickly down the Main Corridor toward D-Block. I asked Joe what was up, and he said D-Block wasn't locking in. That raised my eyebrows.

After a while, they returned, problem handled. Why the whole damned cell block wasn't placed on Lockdown status at that point, I couldn't tell you.

After the noon meal, same thing..."We aren't locking up, screw you, COs!" More officers down to D-block to lock it up. Again, the inmates had to be put into their cells. Again, no lock-up status for the block. Everyone's afraid to piss off the inmates.

D-block is one of the worst cell blocks in this country. It's filled mostly, with inmates who either just were released from The Hole, or are probably going to go to the Hole in a week or two. In short, it's a collection of assholes who've been thrown in prison because they won't conform to society, and now they've been thrown into the Hole because they won't conform in prison. They're the worst in the prison, basically. C-Block isn't far behind, either.

Later in the day, I was heading outside the prison to instruct a Defensive Tactics class. I get to the front gate, and the officer states, "I don't know anything about a class going on. You can't leave." I explained to him that this class has been going on every day for the past two weeks, and that I've been teaching it (and I'm in full uniform, mind you). I told him who to call to verify this.

Again, he refuses to let me out the Front Gate. This is against policy, since not allowing staff members to leave basically constitutes being held hostage, and they've been warned about this. Fortunately, this asshole was behind bullet-resistant glass, so I wasn't tempted to take matters into my own hands as my anger rose sharply.

I threw my jacket onto the table in the front gate bubble and stood there. I told him, "Hey, it doesn't matter to me at this point, jack-off; I'm getting paid until 1400 hours. If you want thirty people sitting in the class with no instructor, you'll be answering why."

Another officer there saw the dilemma and called to verify that I was, indeed, teaching the class. Eventually, Mr. A$$hole opened the gate to let me out, albeit grudgingly.

Needless, retarded frustration. This is the reason we die so young.

smcfalls13
04-21-2006, 01:41 PM
Why do they let inmates out of their cells to begin with? I'm all for permanent lockdown all the time. Let them sit there by themselves, so they can't cause problems.

Oh wait, that wouldn't be nice to the inmates, and we have to make sure they're comfortable, don't we ;)

zenheretic
04-21-2006, 09:30 PM
This isn't the first story I've heard Jim tell about the Gate guards messing with him. Makes me wonder if they are all extremely bored and have some sort of betting pool going...hoping to see who can cause Jimd to have a stroke or maybe burst a throbing vein in his forehead, trying to get in or out of the goddamed prison.

Jimd
04-22-2006, 12:24 PM
Honestly, a few of the Front Gate CO's are on a serious power trip. They have a God Complex. I'm not the only one that gets messed with, but I'm one of the favorites, for certain. They like to be in control, which, unfortunately, is why many (not all) people choose a career in law enforcement; so they can control others.

Re. inmates being let out of cells...
They come out when count clears (generally around 0700 hours) and run around the prison for the majority of the day (the second count is called at 1200 hours, usually goes until 1300 hours). Aside from those times, inmates are running around the prison, to work, school, chapel, psychology, treatment, medical appointments, yard, fieldhouse, and a zillion other activities.

Many inmates work in Correctional Industries (CI) shops, which brings us to much of the crux of the matter. They make money for the state, and the state will not allow those prison shops to be closed down for any reason, the least of which happens to be Security and Orderly Running of the Institution, or our safety.

When the crooks are locked in, CI loses money, and that's the fact of the matter. Our safety means nothing, if we get killed, they pay out around $40,000 in life insurance to our families, and it's a closed matter.

The Deacon
04-22-2006, 12:37 PM
Jim, if Pennsylvania is anything like New York it isn't just CI either. Here the inmates do almost all the cooking, serving, cleaning, painting, laundry and groundskeeping. Sure they are overseen by COs, or Corrections Civilians, or both, and there are a few areas, like the arsenal and the pharmacy, where they are not allowed, but without them, the cost of running a prison would be astronomical.

spydutch
04-22-2006, 12:46 PM
This proves againg what a "fine" :rolleyes: job you actually have Jim.

Take care my man and don't let them get to you ;)

TheKnifeCollector
04-22-2006, 01:30 PM
I just don't get the thinking behind that, not wanting to piss off the prisioners!! Jim, God Bless YOU for all that you have to put up with; prisoners and idiot co-workers!!

smcfalls13
04-22-2006, 02:34 PM
When the crooks are locked in, CI loses money, and that's the fact of the matter. Our safety means nothing, if we get killed, they pay out around $40,000 in life insurance to our families, and it's a closed matter.

Ah, now it all makes perfect sense. It's all about the almighty dollar. :o

zenheretic
04-22-2006, 04:51 PM
Ah, now it all makes perfect sense. It's all about the almighty dollar. :o
Follow the money to get the answers... ;)

Jim do they make license plates in your prison? The license plate "business" is booming all over the country with the vanity plates and the multitudes of variation theme plates that can be bought. Montana, one of the lowest population states, is probably in the top ten for license plate variations :rolleyes: each costing substantially more than the general issue plate.

Jimd
04-22-2006, 07:31 PM
Deacon, those are all good points! Ones I'd forgotten to mention, too! All the maintenance duties are performed by the inmates, as well as the cooking. Believe me when I tell you, inmates are running, like roaches, everywhere in the prison.

Zen, we don't make license plates at my particular prison, that's done at one of the upstate prisons. We make bags, shoes, underwear, clothing, material, and some other crap I'm no doubt forgetting. Hell, our uniforms are made upstate by inmates (which explains the horrible quality of the uniforms!). Other prisons make soap and every imaginable item needed to run a prison. It's actually called "Bighouse Industries". Catchy, ain't it? I know that it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

When I first started at the prison in 1990, the state was MUCH less dependent on the inmate labor, and our lockdowns often lasted for a week. These days, when we have an officer nearly killed, the lockdown only lasts a few hours, and it's instantly deemed an "Isolated Incident[U]", the latest and most oft-used politically correct catch-phrase in Corrections these days.

Every incident that happens in our prison (and others) is immediately labeled an "Isolated Incident" so they can claim they got the bad guys involved, and can continue running the prison. We must be amazingly adept at solving mysteries/crimes, because in our prison, they're solved as soon as they happen. I swear, we have some of the most skilled investigators in the world working inside our walls! Skilled, I say...while at the same time, retarded.

The sons of bitches could give a crap less if any of us walk out the door alive or dead; the place will continue running either way.

JD Spydo
04-22-2006, 08:37 PM
When I was doing research on some of the Mafia bigshots I read that when John Gotti was at Marionville Illinois that he was under 23 hour a day LOCKDOWN. Scott is right when you are dealing with rapists, pimps, murderers, and thugs of all savory varieties why can't they just do that and lock them down 23 hours a day like the SUPERMAX federal prisons do? When someone is that depraved I don't have a problem with it. And keep in mind that I am somewhat anti establishment in some areas but when it comes to totally depraved reprobates I just don't know what else you can do with them without risking the prison staff. I also think that about a third of the people holding public office should be in one of these institutions :mad:

smcfalls13
04-23-2006, 12:15 AM
I also think that about a third of the people holding public office should be in one of these institutions :mad:

Oh it's a lot more than just a third :p

Jimd
04-23-2006, 11:35 AM
You guys know how to tell when a politician is lying?

It's easy....when his mouth is moving!

vampyrewolf
04-23-2006, 01:36 PM
This is why the past centuries had it right...

public executions, bodies left hanging from the gallows till they start to rot, public whippings, and firing lines... never mind some countries' wonderful idea of chopping off limbs.

If a thief loses a hand, it's fairly easy to identify them. They aren't going to try again. Never mind what I think rapists and molesters should lose :eek:. Hang the killers, and they won't murder a 2nd time. Modern methods are a deterant, not a stop measure. So the drug dealers and robbers are off the street till thier laywer gets em out... if they don't even make it a week behind bars it's a little hard to release em into society again.

Never mind how much space it would free up, think of the revenue they'd save! You only have to pay the law enforcement to keep the peace, and execution is a lot cheaper than keeping an inmate for 15-20yrs+. It's a lot bigger deterant to know you are going to die for your crimes than living on taxpayer's coin for years to come before being let out so you can do it again.

foggy
04-25-2006, 10:28 AM
I like that idia for rapists :eek: