Thin Blue Line: Corrections Officer

Friday 14 December 2012

Corrections Officer

Corrections officers from around the state say recent budget cuts are putting prison workers and community members in danger.To make their concerns known, Monday afternoon dozens of corrections officers, their families and other supporters gathered along M-47 in Tittabawassee Township for an informational picket.They were met with several honks, which Michigan Corrections Organizations union members believe is a sign of support."I think solidarity, I think it's union support, I think it's good, I think a lot of the people don't know what's going on," said Dennis Haefele, who works at the Saginaw Correctional Facility.Union members are upset with the state's elimination the 'Perimeter Safety Vehicle' which used to patrol these fences 24/7. The state says camera and other technology upgrades have the perimeter covered."If you show me a camera that can stop a prisoner climbing the fence, I want to see it," said Bill Henderson, the secretary for MCO, and corrections officer at the Saginaw Correctional Facility."Obviously we build prisons so that no one gets out and those vehicles aren't the only think keeping prisoners in," countered Russ Marlan, a spokesman for the Michigan Department of Corrections.Patrols will still happen on a random basis. Marlan adds the move will save $13 million and argues the change came from within prison walls. "The idea with the vehicles actually came from prison wardens, that just felt they weren't getting the bang for their buck on those vehicles.Corrections officers believe they should have a bigger say in what gets cut.