Inmate Manipulation In Correctional Facilities [2023]

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Course Author(s)

Wayne South - Corrections/Police Officer

Course Summary

This course is about protecting you, the correctional officer, from inmate manipulation and games. It is hard enough to work in a correctional facility without dealing with the games inmate’s play. This important discussion can help you become more aware of manipulation and recognize the signs. 

During this course, we will talk about the need to discuss manipulation and games that inmates may play. You do not have to search hard to find a case in the news in which an employee at a correctional facility has been caught bringing contraband into the facility for inmates. Several examples are highlighted in this course. By recognizing how inmates attempt to groom and set you up, you can better protect yourself.

You will learn about various ways an inmate will select an officer or employee, groom them, and manipulate them into doing things that are against policy or are illegal. The terms used when an officer enters the corrections profession will be discussed too, as well as the instinct to be trusting.

The process of how an officer is selected for manipulation is outlined in a 14-step process. This process does not follow a specific order, can skip steps all together, and can often be accidental. An inmate’s ability to influence a correctional officer is uncanny. 

Watch this course and protect yourself and your job. Inmates will take advantage of you if you allow them to. Sometimes just being able to recognize that you are being set up will protect you. Remember, inmates have nothing but time, and they will take advantage of you if you allow them to.

Course Syllabus

  • Module 1 - Persuasion

    • Introduction by Wayne South
    • Definitions
    • Power of Persuasion
    • Power of Persuasion - Continued
    • Assessment
  • Module 2 - The 14 steps

    • How Are Officers Picked?
    • Observation
    • Selecting a Victim, Test the Limits, Support System
    • Empathy and Sympathy, Plea for Help, We-They Syndrome
    • Offers of Protection
    • Sex
    • Touching, The Rumor Mill
    • The Shopping List, The Lever
    • The Sting
    • Steps to Avoid Manipulation
    • In Summary
    • Assessment
  • Module 3 - First Hand Accounts

    • Story of Manipulation From Former Inmate
    • A Candid Talk by Officer Dave Smith
    • Conclusion
    • Assessment