Ask a Correctional Officer anything

454 Questions

Last Answer on February 10, 2022

How do the guards treat the inmates, in general? Is there any law or internal policy that requires that prisoners be treated with some minimum level of respect and humanity? Or are guards free to be jerks as they please?

Asked by Bastille1 over 11 years ago

Title 15 of the California Code of Regulations, commonly known as the Directors Rules for the prison system, is pretty definite on that subject. EVERYBODY, staff and inmates, are expected to treat each other respectfully as circumstances permit. I grant you it is hard to be respectful when you are trying to break somebody's arm with a PR-24, but it is there. Inmates are regularly written up for disrespect, and inmates commonly file written comalints against staff for disrespect. Most of the time inmates complaints of disrespect are BS, to them tellling them what to do, where to go, and what to do when they get their is disrespectful. Generally speaking everybody gets along better with everybody if you treat them halfway decently. MOst people in prison really want to get along, at least on the surfact. It makes life easier.

1038 Votes

Who cleans prison cells - the prisoners or some janitorial service? Also, how do prisoners do laundry?

Asked by mitchfork almost 12 years ago

Prisoners do their own cell cleaniing, unless something REALLY messy happens, like somebody gets killed in there.

Generally speaking the inmates turn in their clothes in bags on one day and get them back the next day. The bags, with the clothes in them, get run through the wash and dry in the laundry bags with number tags on the bags so they get back to the right place. Individual clothes are not labeles to individual inmates, at least not in california. They are responsible for washing their own personally owned clothing, which they are allowed to own in General Population. Landury is a major expense and a major logistical headache in the system.

1034 Votes

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What is the psychological evaluation like?

Asked by Lolop over 11 years ago

I have no idea. They did not have a formal psych screening when I started with the department.

1034 Votes

You mentioned prisoners making wine, weapons, tattoo guns and such, MacGyver-style. What's the most inventive thing you've ever seen a prisoner make?

Asked by McGillis almost 12 years ago

one guy made a fairly good looking but fortunately non-functional, Sten gun in the furniture shop. that was clever, scary, also terribly stupid.

1004 Votes

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Why do so many prisoners become Muslims while in jail?

Asked by qwerty almost 12 years ago

On a numerical basis it isn't so many, but the numbers can become meaningful. When you get somebody who is disaffected, probably feels dumped on and discriminated against, finding a group of like-minded people who are willing to tell you that YOU are ok and the SYSTEM is what is wrong is personally validating.

1002 Votes

Do jail inmates get to vote?

Asked by Luca almost 12 years ago

In some states some prisoners get to vote in some elections. I admit my memory is foggy on this. It also depends if you mean JAIL or PRISON. Inmates in jail, if they have no other convictions, are not felons. They can vote. It is technically difficult for them to do so and they seldom bother, but they can. In many states convicted felons can not vote, in some they can, and it sometimes depends if they are voting in federal or state elections. As an aside, Al Franken, the senator from Wisc, voted for Obamacare. It passed by one vote. Franken won his seat by about 400 votes. It is KNOWN that over 1,100 ex-felons registered and voted illegally in that election. Information indicates that ex-felons overwhelmingly vote Democrat. So, in one respect you could say that Obamacare is a direct result of (possibly unintentional) voter fraud by convicted felons.

998 Votes

How do inmates shave in prison, assuming they can't have blades?

Asked by OC Blake almost 12 years ago

generally they use disposable type BIC razors. it is not hard to break the blades out of them, melt them into a tooth brush handle and turn them into a pretty decent slashing weapon. except in Adminsitrative Segregation razor blades are not that tightly controlled, it just isn't practical.

997 Votes