Ethics and Leadership from the Tier

We often think ethics as being really removed from corrections. After all, we are working with people who seem to have never heard of the word before or due to gang participation, have an upside down understanding of the word.

But we often practice ethics: we practice firm, fair and consistent on a daily basis. We demonstrate it to the inmates in how we work with each other. And often, it is the way we treat each other that shows inmates, even gang-bangers, how to be ethical people.

They study us 24/7, most often to figure out how to beat us. It is when they are watching us that they see how we treat each other. And they watch us most keenly when we are at odds with each other: they are looking for that opportunity, that chance to isolate one of us.

It is here that our ethics are challenged. It is here that we can become leaders. When we do the right thing (being fair), disagree about how things should be done, but resolve to continue (being firm) to do what needs to be done until an appropriate correction can be made (being consistent), that we have the big impact.

Not every one of the inmates will be impressed by what we do, how many times have we been sworn at, spit at or worse for adhering to a policy we disagree with. But there may be one or two, maybe three who see this. And it is these few who may suddenly resolve to never come back, upon whom the greatest impact is made.

How to be an Ethical Officer in 3 Easy Steps

As CO's we often wonder what Ethics has to do with us. After all, we work in a prison; why should we even care about ethics? The ones we keep watch over certainly did not care. Why in a prison should ethics matter? Isn't that the chaplain’s job? I think it matters because inmates watch us 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Our fellow officers watch us 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Our fellow officers do because whether we want to acknowledge it or not, we work in teams. How we relate to each other is a matter of ethics. It is fundamental to being a human being. So, yes, even in prisons ethics matter; it matters even more here than in any other job in America.

Ever hear the terms "Fair, Firm and Consistent"? Think that phrase does not go to the core of ethical behavior?

Consistent. To me that means I apply the rules to everybody: inmate or officer; to the staff on the tier, to the office personnel, to the administrative staff, to the tier porter; Black, White, Hispanic, Asian, Protestant, Jew, Muslim, Buddhist; I apply the rules equally to each and every one. I try as best as I can to apply the rules consistently, across the board.

Firm. Even in those situations where I feel uncomfortable, where a fellow staff member was weak and fell down and broke a rule and I have to own up to it, I must be strong in my conviction about being consistent. Every time I interact with an inmate, there are a group of inmates watching. In fact, they watch us 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. In a sense, the tier is a stage and we are the actors on it. They are looking for that moment when we are weak. Some watch us to exploit our weaknesses. They are looking to see if we are weak every time in that situation. They may even create a situation that is similar just to see if that is our weakness. But as a correctional officer, I have to be firm. I can bend, I can have my moment of weakness, but I have to return to that sense of firm as soon as I can. I have to maintain that sense of professionalism in order to be effective.

Fair. We are human. It is hard to be fair. There is the inmate who is always helpful. There are those inmates who get short changed through no fault of their own or anyone elses. But we must be fair. We must treat everybody equally. The only thing that an officer has going is the officer’s word: can you be trusted to do the right thing. And inmates and fellow staff know what is the right thing. When the system fails and fails in a major way, that is what may save an officer. The inmates will remember that this officer was fair, even when the officer did not need to be.

Fair. Firm. Consistent. When we go out onto that stage, we model for inmates ethical behavior and what is the right thing to do.

As many of us in the field are witnessing, state and local budgets have been hit hard. This has forced legislators and local governments to cut back. All sorts of adjustments have been made to deal with the reduced funding. In my area, fewer officers are on the 'beat'. There has been an increase in the number of inmate/inmate, inmate/staff assaults. 

Some of this is directly attributable to the lack of funding. But some of it can also be attributed to the decrease in officer awareness. Decreasing awareness maybe occurring because we are busy loading our brains up with the conversations we are having instead of where our feet are going. 

There have been several studies documenting the decrease in 'situational awareness' by cell phone users. For whatever reasons, when car drivers are talking on their cell phones while driving, their ability to stay focused on the driving environment is drastically reduced.

 I am willing to bet the same thing is happening to us. Our attention is focused on the conversations and not where we are walking. The inmates are watching this. They know we don't have as many staff walking around. They know the pressures that are being added. So they watch to see which of us are letting these outside distractions affect us.
To correct this, before you walk out onto the tier, do a short focusing exercise. Take a breath and feel it enter through your nose, down your throat and into your lungs. Feel your diaphragm push down into your abdomen. Hold your breath for a moment. Release it and 'watch' the reverse process. Do this exercise for 5 times. During the last 2 breathes, expand your awareness to include your immediate surroundings. Just be aware of where you are.

Then walk out the door and onto the tier. Leave the conversation in the office. I promise it will be there when you return.