Correctional Staff Essay

Consequences for Correctional Staff Not only do prison gangs demand more resources, but also create problems for correctional staff. According to Roberts (2014) gangs have become a tremendous threat, because “their existence inevitably brings more violence to inmates and to staff and they engage in a whole range of criminal activity” (p.113). In a “prison gang survey” correctional staff were asked; “Do you believe that the gang members have significantly affected your correctional environment?” (Knox, 2004p.1). Altogether, “the results showed that 63.6 percent responded “yes” to this survey question” (Knox, 2004, p.1). Having an abundance of gang members in prison is dangerous for staff, because these inmates are highly evolved criminals. They are also more likely to commit violent acts. Such as; retaliation killings against other gang members, attacks on …show more content…
One way gangs use other inmates is by recruiting them. Which, is ultimately done to strengthen and grow their gang. They manipulate inmates by offering them protection and by giving them access to variety of contraband. On the other hand, some have argued that inmates are not forced into joining gangs at all. In fact, the accusation has been that inmates join gangs voluntarily. For reasons such as an “inmates need for social identity and belonging contribute to the formation of inmate prison” gangs (Fleisher, 2001, p. 6). Either way, this has proved to be a big problem for prisons. A study conducted by Dr. Knox (2004) “indicated that 11.6 percent of the males first joined a gang or STG while incarcerated” (p.1). Which, means that “one out of ten male prison inmates in America first joined a gang while they were in prison” (Knox, 2004, p.1). Nevertheless, Knox (2004) states that this “rate of new intake into gang life within correctional facilities” demonstrates the power that prison gangs carry