This interview was conducted with the help of my father, Clarence. He is a Correctional Officer and has been since before I was born. This interview is to show you what some Correctional Officers face everyday and how they deal with it.
Rosa: Do you enjoy your line of work or are there days when you wish that you had another job?
Clarence: I mostly enjoy it but there are times when it can drive you crazy but what job isn’t like this? I love my job and I love what I do. I guess that you could say that this is my second home and sometimes my first.
Rosa: About how long have you been in the Correctional field?
Clarence: I have been doing this for almost thirty years. I started when I was in my late twenties, I believe, and I have been doing it off and on ever since then. I have worked at a lot of different Correctional Facilities. No matter where I move, I can almost guarantee that I will have a place to work in a correctional facility.
Rosa: Is this because there is a shortage of Correctional Officers?
Clarence: Well, yes and no. I mean, there are a shortage of Correctional Officers but with the experience that I have also helps to get me a job. As you know, I recently moved to Arizona to work in one of their correctional facilities. I went there because of the pay raise and pay difference from the ones in Oklahoma. I was actually given a transfer to move out there and work.
Rosa: What is it like working there and how hard is it to become a Correctional Officer?
Clarence: It isn’t really that hard. You will need to pass a background check and drug screening. Most of them also require you to have a CLEAT license, you can obtain this by completing a course. There are a few other requirements and some of them will also send you to an academy for extra training. The job isn’t really that hard. Sometimes we will have a few inmates who will get out of hand but for the most part, they are just there to do their time.
Rosa: We hear about inmates getting killed all the time, is this true?
Clarence: Inmates do get killed by other inmates but it does not happen as often as what a lot of people think. Most of the violence in prisons are usually caused by gang violence or criminals who want to show everyone who is boss as soon as they arrive. When you have a facility that is designed for criminals, you will probably get some violence every now and then.
Rosa : What type of job description do you have?
Clarence: My job is to guard the prisoners and to make sure that each one does as they are suppose to do. I walk up and down the halls by their jail cells and do row check whenever they come in or before they go to bed. My job is only as easy as the criminals will let it be. We do have some that will do anything to get back at the Correctional Officers like we are the ones who put them there. I only wish that they would realize that if they did what they were told, it would make it easier on all of us including them. I don’t like to feel like they are taking advantage of me and I wish that they would just do their time and rehabilitate themselves.
Rosa: Thank you for your time and I hope to be able to interview you again someday. This has been a true honor and it will give everyone a little bit of in-site as to what goes on in a prison facility and what the Correctional Officers have to go through.
