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.
There are two ways to go, Civil Service and private. For civil service you have to jump through the hiring agency hoops. Virtually all civil service employers large enough to operate a correctional facility have a web site and you can get a lot of information there, things like age limits, Minimum Qualifications, academy location and length, etc. In fact the California state system only takes applications off the internet now I understand. There are two large private prison operators in this country, and probably several smaller ones. GEO and CCA (Corrections Corporation of America) are the biggies. They also have web sites with salary information, employment opportunities, etc. The Internet is definitely the place to start for either pathway. (I highly recommend Civil Service employment if you can manage it. It pays much better, is much more secure, and tends to offer better promotional opportunities.)
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Good question. I don't have a good answer any more. You need to meet the height-weight ratio. There is no minimum height requirement, there may be a maximum one but I don't think so. You need to have decent hearing and reasonable (but not perfect) vision without corrective lenses. (You can't wear glasses under a gas mask and you need to be able to function while wearing one.) I don't believe there is a color vision test. I think there is a physical agility test, but I don't know what it is. Sorry I couldn't be more help.
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That would depend a lot on circumstances.
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It would depend on the jurisdiction I expect. The Watch Commander, who in California is a Lieutenant, has operational control of the prison during non-business hours. I suspect it is the same in many other jurisdictions. The watch commander can ban a visitor pending review by higher authority, though must have at least some sort of reasoning to do so and there would be paperwork attached to such an action . Banning an employee from the grounds takes a higher authority than the watch commander (again in California.)
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"The Onion" Contributors
What's your favorite Onion headline of all time?
Magician
What's the most amazing magic trick you've ever seen?
MBA Student
How many years of work experience do you REALLY need before applying?
You don't. They recruit you generally speaking. You can let them know you are interested, but you can't just "join."
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It does on occasion happen at the infirmary at the institution. As far as I know inmates are not transported off grounds for such things, but that doesn't mean it never happens. I suppose it is not impossible to do one on an inmate who was at the hospital already for some reason or other, but I don't know that the hospital staff would do it for custody purposes and custody staff do not do intrusive cavity searches, at least in CA.
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No idea. First I ever heard of it. My GUESS is they want to make real sure you bring whatever paperwork they sent you with you and maybe want to try to make sure you are actually coming from the address they sent the paperwork to. It doesn't really make much sense to me. Sorry I can't be of more help.
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