AST June 2018 Magazine Volume 24 | Page 31

Volume 24 June 2018 Edition A Checklist Corrections Officers face daunting challeng- es with contraband ev- ery day; working in a system that always seems to have one-step forward and two-steps back, never truly eradi- cating the problem. (Captain Kevin Branch at Maryland Correctional Institution for Women says drugs were found under stamps or in magazines.) While Institutions keep pace with contraband trends, ple, not only corrections officers, that con- there must be practices in place to look tribute to aiding and abetting in criminal objectively at their interdiction efforts. behavior. ASSESS THE CURRENT SITUATION WITH So, for most interdiction ad- FRESH EYES vancements to work, there must be success factors built in. Continuously re-assessing the environment is critically important to staying on top of contraband issues before they balloon out of This can include extensive new product training by control. the manufacturer of the product, enhancements to standard operating procedures that take into consideration the effect of new products, and meth- ods for reporting and con- tinuous improvement. Key Steps In In- tervention – 29