Saturday 27 June 2015

Ways Of Maintaining Safe Prisoner Transport Systems

By Francis Riggs


A very big percentage of all the prisoner escape cases took place during the process of transportation. Although transporting prisoners is very dangerous, it cannot be avoided because inmates have to be moved from a correctional facility to another due to a number of reasons. For this reason, it is advisable to have effective prisoner transport systems that will ensure safety for the prisoners and the wardens.

Escapes during the transportation process are usually not an accident. These situations take place if some precautionary measures are ignored. Some officers may think that handcuffs are enough to ensure safety which is never the case. They must always be extra careful because it is their lives that will be in danger. These are examples of tips they can use.

Using handcuffs only is not advisable when transporting the prisoners. Other things that could be considered are the leg chains and belly chains. These chains should be made of very strong metallic material that the inmates cannot break even if they tried. To make sure they are strong enough, the chains must be supplied by a reliable company.

The abdomen and leg chains give additional security which the handcuffs may not always provide. Handcuffs give the prisoners the chance to move around from a place to another unlike the other chains that are usually attached to the facility vehicle forcing them to remain in one area. The chains are usually attached to the facility van to prevent the locomotion of the inmates. The chains ought to be fitted safely in places that are far from the officers to prevent being attacked by the convicts.

Prisoner transportation must also be done in special vans and not normal cars. Prison vans have extra added features to ensure more security. For example, the car should have a satellite tracking device that will enable the authorities to know the whereabouts of the van at all times. This will make it easier to find the prisoners if the van is ambushed.

In addition to the satellite devices, there are other devices that can be installed on the vehicles to further improve the security. For example, there must be very strong window and door metal protection that is not easy to break. If these vehicles are like the normal ones with just glass windows, the prisoners will not even need extra effort to break through them.

Apart from preventing the escape of these inmates, the transportation system must also ensure the safety of the officers. There should be an unbreakable barrier between the sections where they sit and where the wardens sit. The officers must also make sure that their weapons are safely kept in places that cannot be accessed by the criminals.

Prison transportation is necessary but at the same time very risky. Extra security must therefore be enforced to prevent discrepancies in the process. Thorough searching should be done before the journey begins so that no dangerous objects are carried to the trip. These and other precautions must always be taken every time prisoners are being moved regardless of the distance.




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