Tuesday 23 December 2014

Importance Of Prisoner Transport Systems

By Stacey Burt


Moving inmates from one place to another is one of the most dangerous things yet it cannot be avoided since it is part of law enforcement. Prisoners can do just about anything on the way so that they never get to prison. The law enforcement agencies did not take this seriously until a thriller by Nicolas cage showed how it is very possible for the inmates to make plans and manage to escape. Prisoner transport systems are therefore a huge part of the correctional system. It must be taken very seriously because it can even lead to severe consequences like death of guards.

Incarceration rates were not that high until the crime levels became very high in the 1980s. Due to the increase in the number of inmates, it became necessary for more correctional facilities to be built. With more prisons grew the need to move prisoners from one to another. For example, a prisoner may need to be moved to another facility because of organizational transfers, a health appointment or if they have developed some kind of a mental problem.

There are a very huge number of prisoners who usually get moved from one facility to another in a single day. In fact, logistics say that in more than 32 correctional facilities in the country, over 200 prisoners are moved. Very many inmates consider this as their only and best opportunity to finally be free hence they do some dangerous things to escape the guards.

There are various methods that the prisoners can use to escape the watch of guards during transportation. One of the methods is through the attacking of the officers. This may even cause accidents that also cause harm to innocent civilians around the scene of the crime. This is why it is necessary to specially train the officers so that they know how to handle such situations.

Not every law enforcement officer can be given the responsibility of transporting the inmates. There are some critical qualities that an officer must possess before they can be given this responsibility. For example, they must be able to shoot from moving cars and they should also have a very high level of physical and mental fitness. They must also be capable of detecting unfamiliar situations so that they can stop escape plots before they happen.

The officers normally make a simple assumption that every prisoner has a plan to escape. This supposition helps them to stay extra careful when handling the job. They can also be capable of applying all the precautionary actions to avoid having regrets. Being sharp-eyed will also assist them to understand if there are any cars behind them.

During this very dangerous trip, communication is very essential. The officers should be able to notice if there is anything weird and call for support immediately since it will be hard to control the inmates if they outnumber the officers. An officer who takes every single detail into consideration will always be more successful in transporting prisoners than one who is not observant.

Even though the officers are allowed to make the above assumption, it is not true. Hence they should avoid treating the inmates like there are trying to escape. They are also human beings with rights hence they must never be mistreated just because they have committed a criminal offence in the past.




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