Parole officer safety 101

January 09, 2009 06:14 AM

By Johnny Blevins
Administrator of Internal Affairs for the Oklahoma Department of Corrections
Except from Corrections Today article

What is known by examining incident reports of probation and parole officers killed in the line of duty is that their assaults were mostly carried out while they conducted routine business, rather than while conducting arrests or searches. Home visits resulted in the homicides of Pauline Stewart of West Virginia in 1977, Mary Fine of Michigan in 1986, Thomas Gahl of Indiana in 1986 and Louise Pargeter of Canada in 2004. A scheduled meeting between a child molester, a sex offender therapist and the offender’s officer resulted in the shooting of Donald R. (Charlie) Knepple of Indiana in 1997.

When examining similar characteristics of the assailants of homicides involving probation and parole officers, one will discover that most offenders:

* Were unemployed;

* Had mental health issues;

* Were supervised for a period of time prior to the assault; and

* Assaulted probation and parole officers while the officers were completing routine duties.

When examining assaults of probation and parole officers, there again is no recent data. A study was completed by the Federal Probation Officers Association (now the Federal Probation and Pretrial Officers Association) in 1992. This study collected data on all assaults and attempted assaults against officers nationwide from 1980 to 1992 (with 48 percent of jurisdictions responding). It found more than 100 rapes and sexual assaults during this time span and only six attempted rapes and sexual assaults. It is clearly important to examine the training provided to staff when results show that assailants are successful in 100 of 106 attempts on an officer.

The following are the current best practices being taught within the Oklahoma Department of Corrections’ Probation and Parole Pre-Service Academy and nationally by the Community Corrections Institute. They were developed by the author and Robert Thornton, director of the Community Corrections Institute in Springdale, Wash.

Office arrangement:

* Arrange office furniture to ensure access to the door, and never place an offender between you and the door;

* Visually examine what potential weapons are laying on your desk;

* Decide what to use as cover versus concealment if an incident did occur in the office;

* Remove pictures of your family that may be visible to the offenders who report to the office;

* Do not discuss your personal life with offenders;

* Do not interview offenders when you are alone in the office, especially after normal business hours;

* Make eye contact;

* Establish a code word in the office that would warn others of an emergency situation; and

* Practice your defensive tactics.

Home visits:

* Determine what equipment is needed to ensure your safety in the field.

* Never go into the field without leaving an itinerary with a supervisor or co-worker.

* Always bring a minimum of two officers when an offender requests help or to talk outside of the office.

* Use drive-bys to visualize activities prior to approaching the home.

* Never park in the offender’s driveway. Ideally, park two houses down on the same side of the road.

* Never take a direct approach to the home.

* Always use door jams as shielding. Do not stand in the middle of the door. Position yourself on the door handle side when a door opens inward. Position yourself on the opposite side if the door opens outward.

* Knock on the door or ring the bell in a normal fashion.

* If an offender refuses to answer the door, leave. Never force a confrontation.

* Never stop observing, listening and smelling while conducting a home visit.

* When the offender answers the door, do not enter quickly. Try to determine who is present. Determine if the offender has animals in the home. If an animal is present, require the offender to have it moved out of the area. All dogs should be viewed as a potential danger.

* Do not sit unless you can ensure it will not place you at a tactical disadvantage.

* Always keep the offender in view. If an offender must retrieve something from another room, escort him or her.

* Never allow an offender to position himself or herself between you and the door.

* If you have any doubt about your safety at any time during a visit, leave, and return with a partner after discussing the situation with a supervisor.

Corrections