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

I know someone has been a correctional officer for 15 years. If they failed a drug test is there a way they wont be fired if they have never been in trouble

Asked by Anonymous almost 4 years ago

It depends on the jurisdiction and the exact circumstances I expect. My GUESS is that one bad test for weed would get you a nasty note in your personnel file. One bad test for coke or heroin might get you fired. Of course the tests are not 100% reliable and, if the person being tested protested his innocence they might very well put him/her on the mandatory test list for a few months. Unless the agency has a hard and fast policy there is a lot of wiggle room and good, long term employees are too valuable to be discarded lightly.

What was the last dream you can remember about?

Asked by Zeke-Boy Sheeppusher Ripley over 3 years ago

You don't really think I would share something like that with an anonymous person on the net, do you?

How to know if an inmate smuggled a phone tk talk to me ? He never said who he was. Just asked am I okay and said how u know its nto me. I called aagin few times. Voicemaik came phoen was dead after he said gotta go. Think its him idk

Asked by Deanna de over 4 years ago

Hard to say. Prison calls come from monitored phones and are collect. A recording say something like "Will you accept a collect call from an inmate at San Quentin State Prison" (or whatever). I don't know if jails do the same thing, but as far as I know jail calls are collect too. If it was not a collect call it was probably made on a smuggled cell phone, or possibly as three way connection from somebody else on the outside making the link-up.

Is the average IQ of a criminal really 85?

Asked by Starfish Peppersocks over 4 years ago

That is pretty close. What used to be called DULL NORMAL or slightly below. Also as a group they are severely undereducated. About 10% total illiterate and about another 15% functionally illiterate, plus a fair number of monolingual non-English speakers.

What are the right and wrong reasons for becoming a correctional officer?

Asked by Peyton about 4 years ago

The wrong reason is because you want to punish bad people. Right reasons, ,maybe to help protect society.

My son seen parole last week. Said the PROBABLY won't make decision till September. Following week is when they moved him. Could that have anything to do with being moved prisons.

Asked by Amber andrade over 4 years ago

Yes. Generally speaking, at least in CA, inmates are paroled to their address of record. It is not uncommon to move inmates closer to where they will be released. If, on the other hand they moved him further away, that MIGHT tend to indicate he will not be paroled. Or not. In CA parole is pretty much automatic for everybody but lifers, Other states work differently. It could mean nothing at all.

Why would my son be moved prisons if he was already in the prison he was going to do his time?

Asked by Amber andrade over 4 years ago

Any number of possible reason. Could be he needed or wanted some sort of program that was available at another facility. Could be medical reasons. Could be an enemy situation. Could be a basic change in his custody level or of the custody level of the facility. Could be he pissed off somebody with enough juice to get him moved.