LASD custody advice

[brl0301]

I graduate next week and found out that I was assigned to NCCF. Just wondering if anyone here worked there and if so, if you have any advice or things I should become familiar with before I get there. Thanks in advance.

[Ron-Solo]

Inmates lie. You can tell because their lips move.

Congrats!

LASD 1978-2011, Class 190

[emvampyre]

Congrats on graduating! NCCF, while not as AWESOME as MCJ is a great place to work...Check your PM I sent you something...

Good luck, be safe!

[zeddy]

I worked at NCCF from 2006-2008. The only advise I have for you is DO NOT do any favors for the inmates!!! May sound stupid but you'd surpised what it will lead to. I know and have worked with 3 guys, at different facilities and stations that are serving time or are about to serve time.

[OIF_VET]

Be humble and start running. Baker to Vegas is a big deal on the dept.

[brl0301]

I was hoping to get involved with B2V at NCCF. I ran it last year when I was working as an SO but Im assuming that its quite a bit more competitive at NCCF than it was at the College Bureau.

[9mmepiphany]

I haven't worked there, but I did spend 40 months at our local correctional facilities...we called them the Branch (min sec) and the Main.

A few things will be universal
1. Inmates lie.
2. There are no emergencies in a custody situation that can't wait for cover officers to arrive.
3. When in doubt, the answer to an inmate request it "NO", but be sure to check with a senior officer to discover correct procedure for the next time.
4. You'll see these same inmates again on the street, your interaction with them will set the tone for how that future interaction will go.

You can learn a lot while working in corrections
1. Learn the games they play...read their probation files
2. Ask questions of the inmates. It helps you understand their POV and how their logic works...which will help later on the street.
3. I know a lot of guys who used their time, in Custody, to go back to school and finish their degree

Good lucky, enjoy the career

[emvampyre]

Be humble and start running. Baker to Vegas is a big deal on the dept.

Yeah, but he works NCCF, not MCJ so he's not going to win anyway!

[Samuelx]

Hey Bro, we have you guys for a couple of hours on Monday and a couple of hours on Tuesday. You are welcome to ask any questions you want during breaks or down time... We're also supposed to have you for two more days of scenario training after graduation but I don't see the exact dates/times on our calendar right now...

[Bobby Ricigliano]

The inmate is not your friend.

Do your job with pride.

Don't take stuff personal or let your pride get you in trouble.

You always have the last laugh because you get to go home at the end of shift and they don't.

[Ron-Solo]

MCJ Alumni here....1978-81. Also worked OT at HOJJ and SBI, old WHR MAX, and BC.

[RickD427]

Congratulations on the academy. Now the real fun begins.

I never worked NCCF. I went to MCJ after the academy and worked the South and Old Max facilities after making sgt. and lt.

I'll second the advice given by previous posters, and would like to add a few points of my own.

Don't underestimate your inmates. They tend to be extremely manipulative and creative. They basically have 24 hours a day to dream up forms of mischief to get into. Do not allow yourself to get co-opted into a scheme. At the same time, you'll never has access to so many crooks at any other time in your career. Take advantage and learn all that you can by watching them. That really requires that you have face-to-face contact. That's good. You should talk and interact with inmates as much as you can. That's how you learn things. I had a very sharp deputy that worked for me at South facility. She knew more about what was happening on the compound than anyone. We actually popped an inmate for cultivation of marijuana as a result of her work.

Your career from this point on will revolve around your ability to manage the behavior of others. You'll have some access to the proverbial "Carrot" and "Stick". Learn to master both tools. Lots of young deputies tend to go heavy on the "Stick" tools and some turn into uniformed thugs. Some deputies go too heavily with the "Carrot" tools and wind up unable to control their inmates. Some of these deputies also wind up in custody themselves after falling for an inmate scam. To be really good, you have to master both tools.

You'll work in a systems that is governed by a ton of rules, regulations, laws, case decisions, and the sometimes inconsistent expectations of your superiors. Get used to it. Also learn to work effectively within that system. It can be done. Good police work requires deputies to be much more cerebral than in times past. Resist the temptation to take shortcuts to meet an immediate goal. It's only a matter of time until you get caught and then things get ugly fast, and your friends disappear. I've seen many deputies get fired for shortcuts, and usually it was something that could have been avoided with just a little more work.

Get ready for your patrol assignment. Patrol training has a very steep learning curve and some folks simply fall off. Learn your code sections, radio codes, case law and report writing before you go to patrol school. Do that, and your FTO will be able to spend more time teaching you advanced stuff.

[retired]

Congratulations on the academy. Now the real fun begins.

I never worked NCCF. I went to MCJ after the academy and worked the South and Old Max facilities after making sgt. and lt.

I'll second the advice given by previous posters, and would like to add a few points of my own.

Don't underestimate your inmates. They tend to be extremely manipulative and creative. They basically have 24 hours a day to dream up forms of mischief to get into. Do not allow yourself to get co-opted into a scheme. At the same time, you'll never has access to so many crooks at any other time in your career. Take advantage and learn all that you can by watching them. That really requires that you have face-to-face contact. That's good. You should talk and interact with inmates as much as you can. That's how you learn things. I had a very sharp deputy that worked for me at South facility. She knew more about what was happening on the compound than anyone. We actually popped an inmate for cultivation of marijuana as a result of her work.

Your career from this point on will revolve around your ability to manage the behavior of others. You'll have some access to the proverbial "Carrot" and "Stick". Learn to master both tools. Lots of young deputies tend to go heavy on the "Stick" tools and some turn into uniformed thugs. Some deputies go too heavily with the "Carrot" tools and wind up unable to control their inmates. Some of these deputies also wind up in custody themselves after falling for an inmate scam. To be really good, you have to master both tools.

You'll work in a systems that is governed by a ton of rules, regulations, laws, case decisions, and the sometimes inconsistent expectations of your superiors. Get used to it. Also learn to work effectively within that system. It can be done. Good police work requires deputies to be much more cerebral than in times past. Resist the temptation to take shortcuts to meet an immediate goal. It's only a matter of time until you get caught and then things get ugly fast, and your friends disappear. I've seen many deputies get fired for shortcuts, and usually it was something that could have been avoided with just a little more work.

Get ready for your patrol assignment. Patrol training has a very steep learning curve and some folks simply fall off. Learn your code sections, radio codes, case law and report writing before you go to patrol school. Do that, and your FTO will be able to spend more time teaching you advanced stuff.

All of the other posts had great info, but I would say this one is the most informative one. Tho he may not have worked there as a deputy, he, as he stated, worked there as both a sgt. and lt. His advice is invaluable OP.

I was assigned to MCJ as a deputy in the mid 1970s, but worked the now closed, minimum dorms at Wayside often. NCCF is of course, a totally different type of facility.

I would only expand on what RickD said about report writing by saying make sure you know how to spell, punctuate and write a grammatically correct report. If you do not do so, you will not make it off of patrol training.

Training is difficult enough; not having good writing skills will make it impossible. I tried to impress that upon the deputies who worked for me when I was a sgt. at MCJ. I told them it didn't make any difference if they made felony arrests all day long if they they were unable to write a good report.

Unless things have changed since I've retired, your patrol training will be six months. If you fail to make it off training, you will return to your prior assignment to remediate your problem on your own. You will have a year to do so and then be sent to a different patrol station. If you are unable to make it off training this second time, you will be given a choice. You can accept a demotion to a lesser paying custody assistant position, which is non sworn (no gun, no badge). Your other option will be to resign.

Tho the majority of deputies make it off training, I knew of some who did not and were faced with the above choices. I don't say this OP to scare you, just to make you realize you must be well prepared prior to going to patrol. Make your time in custody worthwhile. Take English and writing classes if necessary.

Congratulations on becoming a LASD deputy. It is one of the best departments in the world and despite my many surgeries, I enjoyed being a member of the dept.

Stay safe and always, always wear your vest when in the field. It is better to be hot, sweaty and uncomfortable in your vest than cold in your coffin.

[TASK, LLC]

Congratulations!

[brl0301]

Thanks everyone for the congrats and for the info. I will keep everything in mind and try to learn as much as I can during my custody time.