THE PRISON SYSTEM AND THE CHALLENGES OF THE PRISON OFFICER PROFESSION

Abstract

The interest that guided the choice of the theme was due to the author's professional experience as a prison officer in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. Through work experience combined with studies during the Police and Prison Intelligence Course, it became necessary to highlight the importance of the role of prison officers in safeguarding civil society in the exercise of surveillance and custody of prisoners in the Brazilian prison system.

According to the latest survey by the National Penitentiary Department (2020), the current prison population in Brazil totals 759,518 people incarcerated in all regimes. Referring to the figures for the state of Rio Grande do Sul, the Superintendence of Penitentiary Services (SUSEPE) presented an estimate of 42,573 people incarcerated in the state, of which 40,423 are male prisoners and 2,270 are female prisoners.

Crime has been steadily increasing in large urban centers, a major aggravating factor for Brazilian society, and one of the main factors resulting in recidivism in Brazilian prisons. The prison population has been growing exponentially, but the pace of expansion of prison units has not kept pace.

In this scenario, there is the role of the prison officer, whose mission is to ensure discipline and security in prisons, exercising custody, escort and monitoring of prisoners. The contact with prisoners occurs full-time and at varying degrees of danger, and is considered a risky profession. Prison officers are subordinate to the security departments of each state. Entry into the career is done through a state or federal public examination. It is on this employee that much of the responsibility of exercising contact and state authority falls, as well as the obligation to ensure compliance with punishment and the process of resocialization of the prison population.

The prison theme is closely correlated with public security, which is why the author was interested in analyzing the topic with the purpose of assisting future research that deepens the study. In order to understand the proposed theme, it is necessary to present some concepts about the theory of the Brazilian Prison System.