Scenes of Prison
49. Calling a Bluff Takes Heart
"M ister Larsen, Mister Larsen,” said Samuel.
“Yes,” I said, “what can I do for you?”
Samuel came up to me and stopped, then he stepped a little closer.
“I’ve got some things I want you to do for me,” he said in a lowered voice.
I was standing in the hallway that passed by our unit. I was standing in the doorway of our security capsule, located in the middle of the hallway, halfway between the two entrance doors to our unit. There was no one anywhere nearby. Samuel was walking along the hallway and stopped me in the doorway to speak to me. It was midmorning. It was a quiet morning, and his request was totally unexpected.
“I have some items I’d like you to bring in for me from the outside,” he said quietly. “A little weed for starters.”
When he spoke these words, I visibly stiffened, and he noticed it right away. He was ready for my response, and before I could say anything, he spoke again.
“I have some friends on the outside,” he said. “If there’s any problem getting this stuff brought in, you can expect a visit from them. You and your family at home.”
Samuel did not look big or mean or tough. He was not a dangerous looking inmate, but he was deadly serious today. I made no reply to him. My stiffened posture did not relax. If anything, a mounting rage probably betrayed itself in my appearance.
Samuel made no further demands or threats. He said he would “let me know,” and he walked away.
I watched Samuel as he disappeared around a corner in the hallway. There was a casual swagger in his gait, and I imagined that he was feeling quite pleased with himself and quite sure that I would become his drug currier into the prison, or at least his newest drug currier. He probably imagined that I was frightened by his words and worried about the welfare of my wife and children. He was probably planning his next move. He was in for a big surprise.
Samuel gave no specific details of the violence or injuries he was threatening. It was sufficient for his purposes to allow my imagination to furnish his threat with frightening details of my own creation, to add details that would make his threat irresistible.
I had listened to Samuel quietly and carefully. I had asked him no questions, and I didn’t try to end the conversation. I was supposed to be afraid, and he did his best to make sure I was afraid, but I wasn’t frightened. I was angry. I was very angry, and I imagine my anger was revealed to him by my body language.
Here I was, a caseworker, working all day long to help inmates like him, and this was his thanks. This was how he wanted to use me.
As soon as our conversation ended, I returned to the Unit, got out my pen, and I sat down in the office with a piece of paper. I wrote down every word he had said, and I described his nonverbal gestures and voice tones to give a complete account of our conversation. I copied this onto an Inmate Misconduct Report form, and I turned it in. It took about an hour.
My report was logged in at Central Control and quickly found its way into the inbox of Sergeant Smith, our investigating officer. By midafternoon, Samuel received a visit from Sergeant Smith. When they sat down together, Sergeant Smith opened his briefcase and pulled out the Misconduct Report I had written.
“Got a Misconduct Report to read to you, Samuel,” he began.
Sitting across the table from Sergeant Smith, Samuel was forced to listen to his conversation with me repeated to him word-for-word by Sergeant Smith, and then he was asked to explain himself. Finally, Samuel would learn the specific charges he faced and the penalties that could be imposed upon him. He would also soon get to repeat his explanation to the Disciplinary Committee when they held his hearing.
Two things would have occurred to Samuel after his visit with Sergeant Smith. First, he would realize that there would be no private conversations with me. Anything and everything he chose to say to me, he would also be saying to the Disciplinary Committee and to any other judicial hearing where my report might find itself. If anything happened to me or to any of my family members, the document that Sergeant Smith was reading to him at that moment would implicate him, so he most likely wished me and my family good health and good fortune for the foreseeable future.
A second thing that would have occurred to Samuel was that I might be just as devious, cunning, and ruthless as he was, and I might add some details to the story that didn’t actually occur. I could fabricate incriminating accusations, or I could make up an entirely new conversation that never occurred which could result in new charges being brought against him, charges that could bring him more time in prison, push his TRD off into the future, and "mess with his time!" All I had to do was to be angry enough to want to do it, and Samuel knew I was angry.
Fortunately for Samuel, I was not devious, cunning, or ruthless, but if I was, in the realm of inmate logic, this made me a very dangerous person for Samuel, and he would be wise not to give me any more cause to use my pen to ruin his life.
I correctly handled Samuel’s threat. He had a TRD he was guarding, so he was looking forward to being released from prison one day. He did not want to stay longer because of reports that I might write.
I never heard anything more from Samuel, but I also chose not to mention our conversation to my wife when I got home from work that night.
Prisoners would label my actions as having heart. It is a compliment, and it means that a staff member will not be reluctant to report misconduct regardless of the harmful consequences it may have for an inmate. He/She will not be persuaded by pity for an inmate who must now suffer the consequences for his own actions, even if those consequences are drastic. It also means that a staff member is not easily frightened, and he/she can be depended upon to do the right thing.
Discussion
- There is bravery in controlled anger which the author employed to respond correctly to Samuel’s threat. Have you ever used your anger in a tightly controlled effort to influence others?
- Do you have heart?
Next |