NJ Correction Officers work in most difficult conditions

Twenty-four hours a day, 365 days a year, New Jersey correctional officers walk the toughest beat in America.

During our careers, the average officer will be assaulted at least four times.  The stress of our jobs is so great that, on the average, we will not see our 56th birthdays.  More than 16,600 of our co-workers were assaulted by inmates last year alone.

Where we work, the AID/HIV rate is seven times higher than the general population.  Toxic cocktails comprised of urine, feces, blood, vomit, mucus and semen routinely are thrown at us.  Every year, we attend memorial services honoring the men and women who gave the ultimate sacrifice while doing a job few would dare to do, and every year, new names are added at those memorials.

We are not guards, screws, hacks or turn-keys.  We are professional correctional officers and we are the public's last line of defense.  On the beat we patrol, all of the citizens are convicted felons.  We supervise all of the murderers, rapists, child molesters, and armed robbers, drug dealers and thieves.

Tomorrow is designated as Peace Officers Memorial Day in New Jersey.  On this day, we honor the courageous officers who do the dirtiest job in law enforcement.  We want society to know that we are here, every day of the year, every hour of the day, protecting public safety by putting our lives directly between society's worst deviants and the state's law-abiding citizens.

When you next drive past a prison or county jail, don't think about the convicted felons housed there, think about the men and women who risk their lives protecting yours.

Henry J. Ruiz

 

Letter to the Editor

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