Adequate, well-trained personnel vital at prisons

Friday, March 29, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

New York State Department of Correctional Services learned many lessons from the Attica riot in 1971. They learned the value of providing new recruits with rigorous training which continues throughout an officer's career. They learned to pay officers a good salary to prevent high turnover rates.

And most important, DOCS learned to keep the inmate-to-staff ratio low. These rational solutions to prison problems are what makes New York's prison system, with more than 69,000 inmates, one of the safest and best run in the country.

Because of our 50-to-1 inmate-to-staff ratio and direct inmate contact, correction officers are able to monitor and manage behavior more closely, thus giving us the opportunity to detect and resolve potential problems before they occur.

SDCC training officer Travis Ashley has the right philosophy about dealing with inmates: When security treats inmates in a firm, fair and consistent manner, potential problems are averted. However, when security is understaffed, overworked and stressed out, major problems are inevitable.

New York state has learned the lessons taught in Attica -- will SDCC?

Scott A. Renshaw