Difference between Deputy Sheriff in corrections and correctional officer?

[smokeythebear06]

What is the difference between a Deputy Sheriff working in the jail and a correctional officer? I know that the deputy sheriff has gone to a P.O.S.T. academy, but I am asking job wise what the difference is? The correctional officer academy at the local community college is like 4-weeks long, and the police academy is about 6 months long, so I figured there must be a difference between the jobs they both do. I live in California by the way, so I realize that the length of the academies vary by state.

[Samuel]

Length of academies also vary by academy (within CA). Big difference between the two is the DS is sworn, the CO isn't. For specific differences, you'll have to check with the individual agency - every agency has different job descriptions and duties/responsibilities.

[scott715us]

Sheriff's deputies do not necessarily go to a POST academy. It depends on what their job function is. If they are road deputies (patrol) or courtroom security, then they do get commissioned and go to the LE academy in my state (TN). If they simply work the jail and transport, then they are not commissioned officers (no POST academy, but possibly correctional academy). Those who work in state corrections (prisons) are solely corrections officers that go to a correctional academy (unless they work under specific units where a commission is required). I know many sheriff's departments across my state who start you off in the jail and then you work your way up to a road deputy, where you then attend the state LE academy.

[smokeythebear06]

Length of academies also vary by academy (within CA). Big difference between the two is the DS is sworn, the CO isn't. For specific differences, you'll have to check with the individual agency - every agency has different job descriptions and duties/responsibilities.

Yea, I do realize that the different academies are different lenghts, but I've noticed that most of them are 24-27 weeks long. I have tried to research the differences and they seem to be very similar. When I was a police cadet/explorer, when the officer I was riding with took somebody into custody, I saw people working in the jail wearing uniforms that said CORRECTIONS on the back and I saw people wearing sheriff deputy uniforms. Unfortunately I never asked if there was a difference in their job duties when I had the chance to, and now I am wondering. I did notice however, that the sheriff deputies had a full duty belt on, but their gun, baton, and tazers were not in their holsters. But the correctional officers only had handcuffs and a radio if I remember correctly.

[smokeythebear06]

Sheriff's deputies do not necessarily go to a POST academy. It depends on what their job function is. If they are road deputies (patrol) or courtroom security, then they do get commissioned and go to the LE academy in my state (TN). If they simply work the jail and transport, then they are not commissioned officers (no POST academy, but possibly correctional academy). Those who work in state corrections (prisons) are solely corrections officers that go to a correctional academy (unless they work under specific units where a commission is required). I know many sheriff's departments across my state who start you off in the jail and then you work your way up to a road deputy, where you then attend the state LE academy.

The jobs I've applied with sheriff departments said that they send you to the academy, and upon completion you get sworn in as a Deputy Sheriff initially assigned to either custody operations or as a baliff(if I read it correctly). But I have noticed that these departments also hire correctional officers, so I was just curious if there is generally a difference between the jobs.

[Samuel]

Yea, I do realize that the different academies are different lenghts, but I've noticed that most of them are 24-27 weeks long. I have tried to research the differences and they seem to be very similar. When I was a police cadet/explorer, when the officer I was riding with took somebody into custody, I saw people working in the jail wearing uniforms that said CORRECTIONS on the back and I saw people wearing sheriff deputy uniforms. Unfortunately I never asked if there was a difference in their job duties when I had the chance to, and now I am wondering. I did notice however, that the sheriff deputies had a full duty belt on, but their gun, baton, and tazers were not in their holsters. But the correctional officers only had handcuffs and a radio if I remember correctly.

Again, it's agency specific. E.g. we don't have "corrections officers", we have "custody assistants". Our CAs are not sworn. We also have "security officers" and "security assistants". The SOs carry firearms, the SAs don't. Neither of those are sworn. Rumor is that the SOs are paid less than the CAs - can't figure that one out...

[smokeythebear06]

Again, it's agency specific. E.g. we don't have "corrections officers", we have "custody assistants". Our CAs are not sworn. We also have "security officers" and "security assistants". The SOs carry firearms, the SAs don't. Neither of those are sworn. Rumor is that the SOs are paid less than the CAs - can't figure that one out...

Ok that makes sense. Just outta curiousity, in your agency, do the custody assistants do a different job than the deputy sheriffs assigned to custody operations?

[Blackgoat06]

When I worked in the jail in NC they used to punish road deputies by putting them in the jail. Made the jailers feel pretty good about themselves

[Legoate]

One local agency I work around has both Deputies and CO's. The CO's are not sworn officers and provide no patrol function. They also do not carry guns and make less money, have a lower retirement.

Inside the jail both have basically the same job function. However the deputies also do patrol duties and most of the transports.

Some agencies use the two classifications to try you out before sending you to a full academy. You may have to work a few years as a CO in the jail before they decide to sponsor you into a full length POST academy.

[retdetsgt]

Like Samuel keeps saying, it's different everywhere.

In some counties here, deputies work the jail and can go from jail to patrol and back. In others, they have what they call corrections officers who are just jailers. The big county in Oregon has corrections deputies as they call them. They used to be corrections officers, but when the sheriff got heat for having nearly all white, all male deputies, he took the easy way out and made all the corrections people deputies and gave them the same uniform, badge, etc. The sad thing is, although they don't have the same authority as road deputies, you can't tell the difference by looking at them and their uniforms.

The state has an entirely different academy and certification process for corrections officers and corrections deputies than from regular sworn people. Although a regular deputy can work the jail, the reverse isn't true.

Confused yet?

[retdetsgt]

One local agency I work around has both Deputies and CO's. The CO's are not sworn officers and provide no patrol function. They also do not carry guns and make less money, have a lower retirement.

I remember when the county here created corrections officers to replace deputies in the jail. It was to save money by paying them less, etc. After about 10 years or so of union organizing and collective bargaining, the corrections officers were on a par with the deputies. Then as I just posted, now they're all in the same union and have the same badges, etc.

[mcsap]

In PA , the Sheriff's are not the police and mainly do prisoner transport and courtroom security. The police are the police. A Sheriff cannot lateral to a PD without going to the entire 5 month police academy.

[tcop733]

Like Samuel keeps saying, it's different everywhere.

In some counties here, deputies work the jail and can go from jail to patrol and back. In others, they have what they call corrections officers who are just jailers. The big county in Oregon has corrections deputies as they call them. They used to be corrections officers, but when the sheriff got heat for having nearly all white, all male deputies, he took the easy way out and made all the corrections people deputies and gave them the same uniform, badge, etc. The sad thing is, although they don't have the same authority as road deputies, you can't tell the difference by looking at them and their uniforms.

The state has an entirely different academy and certification process for corrections officers and corrections deputies than from regular sworn people. Although a regular deputy can work the jail, the reverse isn't true.

Confused yet?

Yup, where I work the uniforms look the same for jailers and peace officers.
Harris county has white shirts to distinguish the jailers from peace officers.
Actually had a jailer come up to me and ask what he was legally bound to do if he came across an accident or other incident on the way to work.
Told him to call dispatch, other than that he has no authority outside the jail unless he's assisting in the transport of inmates.
Scary to think some of these folks have no idea where their authority ends.

[retdetsgt]

Scary to think some of these folks have no idea where their authority ends.

Oregon has a state run academy all corrections people have to complete where I assume they teach them that.

The sheriff that made a mess of things was John Bunnell of "Wildest Police Videos" fame. He was only sheriff for one term and then got beat by a retired deputy chief from my department. The new sheriff couldn't change things back, but he made it clear that he had a no tolerance policy for corrections people representing themselves as LE deputies.

He retired from being sheriff about the time I retired so I don't know what happened after he left. But even back when they were corrections officers and had a different badge, we had problems now and then with them playing policeman. I wouldn't be surprised if it's a problem again.

It's a whole lot easier to be hired as a corrections deputy than as a LE one and it shows.

[scott715us]

The jobs I've applied with sheriff departments said that they send you to the academy, and upon completion you get sworn in as a Deputy Sheriff initially assigned to either custody operations or as a baliff(if I read it correctly). But I have noticed that these departments also hire correctional officers, so I was just curious if there is generally a difference between the jobs.

Different areas, different policies as others have suggested. In TN, most sheriff's departments do not send their personnel to the academy unless they're going to be on the road. The "jailers" don't go to TLETA (TN Law Enforcement Training Academy).