Times Have Changed in Prison Too

It’s probably not the kind of job that most women would want.

But Kathy Elias likes it just fine.

Being a corrections officer at the California Institution for Men in Chino is “extremely challenging,” she said.

For many years, women were not allowed to work in men’s prisons in California. But, with affirmative action, that is history and Elias is

happy about that.

During a typical eight-hour day, she searches prisoners for weapons, patrols large holding cells, escorts inmates to and from the prison exercise yards and keeps a vigilant eye out for any trouble brewing between prisoners.

In short, she and other guards try to keep the inmates in line.

Elias, one of about 200 female guards at the facility, is well aware of the dangers of working there. There are about 90 attacks on officers each year at Chino and most of the 700 guards are required to wear knife-proof vests to protect their upper bodies.

To minimize the dangers, prison officials require that each inmate be strip-searched before being allowed to mingle with other inmates in the exercise yards.

“It’s all in a day’s work,” Elias said.