You guys are right.

I’ve never noticed a staff member targeted solely based on his/her looks, but it makes perfect sense that they would be. Now that it’s been mentioned I’m sure it happens. That’s a good point. Although I’m not a slob or totally out of shape I’m also not the poster boy for fitness that I once was.

The more agressive inmates attempt to get along with the “stronger” staff members than the ones they consider to be “weak”.

I have personally witnessed inates target an Officer based upon his appearance. He was percieved as weak and unprepared.

If for nothing else than to be ready for a fight, you need to stay in a ready condition. Ready to protect yourself, and ready to protect me if necessary. I need to be able to count on other officers to stand tall with me in the breach of chaos. Appearance is 90% of the fight. Inmates can be mentally intimidated into submission. Tell me you don’t see it everyday inmates give more respect to those whom they feel they cannot defeat in battle. Are you a predator or are you the prey?

I can’t count the number of times I have heard inmates talk about officer’s who clearly need to push themselves away from the fried chicken table. It paints the whole field in a bad color….

Corrections have long been on the same page as military service, and the comparison of the two entities. The two professions require similar skills or disciplines: highly honed combat readiness, the ability to follow orders and work as a unit, as well as tight mental discipline. But overweight, out-of-condition officers make up the ranks of our institutional rosters all over the country. Corrections should set the bar high when it comes to physical fitness because those who can’t pull their weight create a liability that reverberates throughout the entire organization. While not all correctional agencies field physically unfit officers, a surprising number have never established or enforced physical fitness standards. In some cases, it’s a matter of outside organizational pressure, in others department executives have been reluctant to chase into retirement older officers who might have trouble meeting the standards.

I`d have to say that i agree with mick it`s very important to look sharp inside as well. even inmates judge us by apperances

I would agree but it is not only important for us to look neat and tidy to the public. When we are “inside” it’s just as important for us to be just as presentable when dealing with the inmates. If we we appear sloppy and untidy it gives the impression to them that if we are that careless with our own appearance then it stands to reason we must be as careless and sloppy in our work. But we appear with boots shined and shirts and trousers ironed and sharp it speaks volumes to them about your work practice.

Mudflap and iceonfire, you have hit it on the head. It is not when we are ‘walking our beat’; it is when we are out on the beat that our bosses see us. They form an opinion and it takes dynamite to remove that impression. They work hard for their money; they have reason to see a good return on that investment which happens to be us. We should look the best we can be to show that they got good value for their dollar.

I have to concur here, Far to many times I have seen our staff looking bad outside of work. Shirts untucked, hats tilted to the side, toothpicks in their mouths, just looking like slobs in general. What they fail to realize is this is when our bosses (the tax payers) see us, not when we are inside the jail, only the supervisor and the convicts see us there. The public perception is far more important as they decide things like more money for pay and equipment to keep us safe. More money for more prisons to bring down the over population and help us do our jobs better. When we are out in the publics eye, this is when we need to shine and look our best, each of us have a responsibility to pull our brothers and sisters up and tell them when they look bad in public. This is the only way to fix this, and we must lead by example.

Sometimes I’m actually embarassed when I stop at a local convenience store on my way to work, see another CO getting coffee or something, and he looks like something the cat dragged in: dirty, wrinkled uniform and scuffed footgear. It might be different if it were a once in a while observation, but it happens all the time.

Do you take pride in your appearance?