PERT: Prison Emergency Response Team

Life in prison:

 

Emergency Response Teams, or ERTs, have the duty of responding to, and quelling, dangerous situations, such as riots and incidents involving disruptive and/or violent inmates, within prison and jail facilities.

These highly trained corrections officers almost always volunteer to be members of these elite squads. There is no extra pay unless they happen to be working overtime. And, they must be ready to respond to any given emergency within a short period of time, usually ten minutes, or so.

ERT teams, also known as CERTs (Corrections Emergency Response Teams), or PERTs (Prison Emergency Response Teams), are normally comprised of at least six members. Each of those team members is assigned to a special job.

For example:

Team member number one is the leader and coordinates and plans the team’s movements. This person must also be able to give commands under duress.

Team member number two is the team member in charge of videotaping the critical incident.

Team member number three is the officer who enters the area first to handle the unruly prisoner. This officer is normally the largest, strongest, and best trained individual in the group. They also wear full protective gear, such as flak jacket, head gear, and tactical gloves. Officer number three should also be one of the most experienced officers on the team.

(From the US Military Dictionary : Flak jacket – A sleeveless jacket made of heavy fabric reinforced with metal or kevlar, worn as protection against bullets and shrapnel).

Team member number four is back up to member number three and is outfitted accordingly.

Team member number five is outfitted with minimal protective gear for flexibility, which allows this officer to apply restraints, if necessary.

Team member number six is back up for member five.

 

Before an officer can be accepted as an ERT team member, they must pass a physical agility test (PAT). A sample PAT is as follows:

1.1.5 mile run in less than 16mins. and 28sec.
2. 300 meter run in less than 71sec.
3. 25 push ups 1-min. 29 sit ups 1-min.
4. vertical jump of at least 16 inches high.
5. bench press

Upon successful completion of the P. A. T., the applicant is then scheduled for an oral board.

Team members are normally required to serve for a period of at least one year.

Note – The above information may vary for individual facilities.

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Holding cell

Jail Cell

 

Yesterday, the handcuff topic led to some new questions. Beth asked, “How do you safely remove the handcuffs?”

My answer to her was, “Officers have the suspect step inside a holding cell and then close and lock the door behind them. The prisoner then places his cuffed hands through or close to an opening in the cell door. This allows officers to safely unlock the cuffs. That opening in the cell door is also used to pass prisoners their food trays.

When officers bring a suspect to an interview room they’ll normally leave the cuffs on their prisoner. If officers are removing cuffs from a prisoner outside a cell they’ll apply a wrist lock technique for control before unlocking the restraints. Two or more officers should be present anytime they’re removing cuffs in an unsecure area.

The picture above is of a typical holding cell. The platform to the right is the bed. In the rear of the cell is a stainless steel toilet/sink combination. A polished steel mirror hangs above the sink. The heavily scratched and dented mirror is held to the wall with bolts that can’t be backed out without a special tool. The thick steel door is equipped with a tray slot and peep hole. You can also see a round piece of stainless steel on the upper door. This is actually a receiver for a computerized device called “The Pipe.”

Jail officers carry the pipe with them as they make their rounds, touching the end of the apparatus to each receiver throughout the jail or prison. The receiver uploads the time and date into the pipe. At the end of the officer’s shift he/she inserts the pipe into a terminal inside the jail’s master control room. The computer then records every movement the officer made during the day. There are also many, many security cameras throughout the institutions. Talk about electronic micro-managing.

* Don’t forget to pick up a copy of Patry Francis’s book THE LIAR”S DIARY. Patry has been dignosed with an aggressive form of cancer and is unable to promote the book. Visit her website at www.patryfrancis.com for more information.

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