Trustees do many worthwhile jobs in the jail. They cook, cleanup, do the laundry, wash cars. Usually it's a good deal, both for the cops and the inmates--who hate sitting in a cell. But, it doesn't always work out that way.
A good example is Larry, who was making six months with us. He'd done six before. And before that. Like many, booze turned his brain into silly putty, winning him vacations in the lockup. Sober, he was smart and a quick study.
He became interested in fingerprints so we showed him how to take them. Having mastered that, he started learning how to classify prints. Soon, he was doing all the fingerprinting and, I expect, there are several hundred fingerprint cards at the FBI in DC bearing his signature as ID Officer.
We had our own darkroom and a few trustees were taught how to develop and print film. This was a big help because a detective, at the time, had to do this work themselves, plus keep up with their caseload.
Too bad they didn't all turn out like that. The County decided that to save money the trustees should reload the practice ammo. Bad move. No matter how trustworthy they seem, some are just working the system and have deep antisocial problems. One such A-wipe hot-loaded several rounds. (Put in way more power than is needed) This resulted in a Deputy's gun exploding on the range and damn near taking off his thumb. So much for saving money,
The worst example has to be Cruckshank the Cook. At the Sheriff's Office there was dining room off the kitchen where Deputies and other cops ate. It was also used by civilian County workers, including Commissioners and Judges. Cruckshank decided that to get back at the system he would urinate in the huge coffee urn. So he did. And did. And did. When he was finally caught, he was in the tenth month of a one year sentence. When asked how long he'd been doing it, he just smiled.
Those of you who wonder why we didn't notice the coffee didn't taste right have never sampled Jailhouse Coffee. Tasted normal to me.
A good example is Larry, who was making six months with us. He'd done six before. And before that. Like many, booze turned his brain into silly putty, winning him vacations in the lockup. Sober, he was smart and a quick study.
He became interested in fingerprints so we showed him how to take them. Having mastered that, he started learning how to classify prints. Soon, he was doing all the fingerprinting and, I expect, there are several hundred fingerprint cards at the FBI in DC bearing his signature as ID Officer.
We had our own darkroom and a few trustees were taught how to develop and print film. This was a big help because a detective, at the time, had to do this work themselves, plus keep up with their caseload.
Too bad they didn't all turn out like that. The County decided that to save money the trustees should reload the practice ammo. Bad move. No matter how trustworthy they seem, some are just working the system and have deep antisocial problems. One such A-wipe hot-loaded several rounds. (Put in way more power than is needed) This resulted in a Deputy's gun exploding on the range and damn near taking off his thumb. So much for saving money,
The worst example has to be Cruckshank the Cook. At the Sheriff's Office there was dining room off the kitchen where Deputies and other cops ate. It was also used by civilian County workers, including Commissioners and Judges. Cruckshank decided that to get back at the system he would urinate in the huge coffee urn. So he did. And did. And did. When he was finally caught, he was in the tenth month of a one year sentence. When asked how long he'd been doing it, he just smiled.
Those of you who wonder why we didn't notice the coffee didn't taste right have never sampled Jailhouse Coffee. Tasted normal to me.
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