What's it like being a corrections officer?

Each year over 33,000 Correctional Officers are assaulted. In the last year records were released on the prosecution rates of those assaults, only 10.9 percent resulted in prosecutions. Yet over 20 percent of the Officers assaulted required medical attention. How loud would the public outcry be if only one in 10 assaults on our city streets, where the assailant was clearly identified, were prosecuted? What would morale be like in our police departments if only one in 10 assaults of our cops were prosecuted? What would our communities be like if the criminal element knew they had only a one in 10 chance of being prosecuted, even if we knew who they were and could prove they committed the assault?

The number and severity of the assaults behind the walls has dramatically increased in the past decade. In the past six years, 47 of our brothers and sisters have died in the line of duty. With continued overcrowding, understaffing and more violent gang members being incarcerated, it will only continue to get worse. But, assaults aren’t the only problem we face.

FULL STORY CorrectionsOne