John's job so far

To say the least John is pretty stoked about his new job. About the only thing he has complained about was that it was difficult to do 8 hour shifts but this is only temporary while at the academy so it is short lived!
One of the best things about his new work environment is he finally feels like he is respected for what he is doing. At this agency, the corrections officers go through the same academy as the police officers with the exception of EVOC training (driving skills). They take different tests according to the job specifications but pretty much have to know many of the same things. Much of his time spent at the 2 week academy has been studying the laws of Florida and learning the different definitions/verbage of their laws as it will pertains to his job. Due to the fact that he is learning the same things as the road deputies, if he ever wanted to go to the road he would NOT have to attend another academy but just take some courses on his days off and take a test to become certified. If he is double certified as a deputy and in corrections this means he can really “have his cake and eat it too”. Meaning he can work in the jail on his regular squad, but then be on the overtime list for the road. The pay scale for both road deputy and corrections are the same so this is how they can be able to do this.

Pretty much from day one of his orientation, John was very impressed with the integrity of the department. Let me give you some examples of why this is…..

IA (internal affairs) was one of the presentations at orientation. One of the main things he emphasized was that there a no tolerance rule for the 'gossip train' at the department. If you are caught causing strife by spreading rumors or discontentment, you will be caught and disciplinary actions will be taken. The sheriff puts out a memo each month to share what is going on 'behind the scenes' with any officer that is under investigation so that that officer does not create a mutiny and cause discontentment in the ranks. It is also in an effort to get out the whole story so that officers are not duped by misinformation that is slanted.

The sherriff and undersheriff came in and spoke to the new recruits. They were extremely approachable eventhough it was an election year. They told the new officers that they will occasionally see them working the jail and patrolling on the road. The way they put it was that they would not tell any of the officers to perform a task that they were too ‘busy’ or politically minded to continue doing. They are very hands on the the departments as well to maintain a cohesive work environment and also provide officers opportunities to approach them with concerns.

Their gun range is no joke. It is an indoor range and they have a viewing area for family members to watch....... no pressure there but it was fun for the kids to watch! John was issued a 40 caliber Glock as all the officers are required to qualify. At Benton county he is used to qualifying with his 9mm Beretta. The Glock has a bit more punch and in order to qualify you have to hit both still & moving targets along with qualifying for day and night shooting. He also had to qualify using a shotgun. Their standard for qualifying is much more stringent than those that John was accustom to. Due to the fact that he was doing this with new weapons & a holster that wasn’t broken in, he almost didn’t qualify. In the end, although he was one of the last ones left, God was gracious and helped him qualify. He does have to qualify again though, once he gets out of academy and passes the state exam. Then he will have to do it again for Lee county so please be praying for this. That he will get plenty of time to practice and perfect his abilities.

The way this academy works is they don’t do a lot of lectures, but just give you a lot of practice tests to get used to the verbage and help you learn from your mistakes. You have to get an 80% in order to pass the state exam and John has a date to take this on the 27th.

From talking to many of the employees at the department, John discovered that the jail is a more coveted job than that of the road. Since the officers in the jail are treated as equals with the officers on the road, there is no discontentment or animosity among the corrections officers. They have their own workout facility that family members can use. They are fed on complete meal each shift they are on duty. Due to the fact that the corrections officers already are respected and are not treated like a ‘red-headed step child’ of the department, the desire to leave or achieve ‘road status’ or deputy, just to receive respect, isn’t an issue. This is really great because instead of working with people that hate their job you are working with folks who genuinely appreciate their job! You see, in Florida, in order to get certified in this state, you have to PAY to go to academy if you have no work experience. This gives the officers a greater appreciation for paying & earning the right to become and officer.

Many of the road deputies come back to the jail due to fact that there is more promotability in corrections than there is on the road. Promotions are achieved not based solely on seniority, experience, testing or oral boards but another factor added is education. If you are interested in advancement you need to be proactive and take them up on their offer to pay for college. You have to complete the courses on your own time but they pay for books and tuition.

There are four jail facilities in Lee county in different locations. There is a facility just for booking, a facility for work camps, the NEW main facility where a majority of the prisoners are kept, and John is not sure what the other facility is for yet. We will keep you updated once John passes the test on where he gets stationed and how he likes it.

PS. If anyone wants to lateral over here, NOW IS THE TIME since they are having a difficult time getting people to pass their backround checks. As you remember from when John was doing his, the backround checks are very thorough so passing can be difficult! We would love to have some familiar faces around here but understand that this would have to be a decision made prayerfully!