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 inmates really earn degrees from prison?

Asked by Prof X over 12 years ago

Not as easily as before, at least in California, due to cutting off of grant money. Other than that it is certainly possible, all you need is the teachers the time and the class material.

Where do prisoners get buried?

Asked by Gordo over 12 years ago

None of the prisons in California have operational cemetaries, though both Folsom and San Quentin have very old ones. When a prisoner dies the remains are turned over to the next of kin for burial. If the next of kin do not take them, they are burried at government expense in whatever cemetary the government contracts with. I believe that is handled by the county and not the state, though I am not 100% sure of that.

What's the fascination for female guards to sleep with male inmates? Seems to happen a lot. (I assume they get fired for that...?)

Asked by Gordo over 12 years ago

Some girls like bad boys. Sometimes it is just the forbidden fruit. Also inmates are, as a group, very good at sensing flaws and targeting people with them. In most states sex between inmates and staff is considered rape because the staff have power over inmates. They are normally fired if they don't quit first, and they are often prosecuted.

Is male-on-male prison sex as prevalent as film and TV would have us believe? Is it purely a power thing or do inmates actually turn gay while in jail?

Asked by Curious over 12 years ago

it happens, but prison rape is not the every-day occurance hollywood would make it appear to be. i have seen prisoners who are straight on the street and are gay inside, but that is not particularly common either. prisoners are very much like other people and they come in almost infinite variations.

Have you ever seen the show Oz? Do prisons with that much chaos and violence really exist?

Asked by W0mbatz over 12 years ago

Yes I did watch it. As far as I know that was complete fiction. Humdrum does not sell advertising or gain viewers.

I know you said the staff don't read the letters, but what sort of things in the letters are the most helpful, welcome, etc for the inmates, and what subjects should be avoided?

Asked by Mary W over 12 years ago

Money is most helpful and welcome. Complaints about how rough things are at home without them, or how stupid they are to end up in prison, are probably the least helpful.

In california what is the policy on hard drugs to become a correctional officer?

Asked by Alexia over 12 years ago

Good question.  I dont have a good answer for you since I was never in the hiring loop other than interviewing.  I had nothing to do with background checks.  I admitted to a little weed in highschool in the 1960s, more than 15 years before I hired on.  They had no problem with that.  I suspect they have a problem with recent drug use. Obvisouly any felony conviction is disqualifying.  My guess is they would have a problem with any significant hard drug use history.