Ethical Considerations Confronting Correctional Vs. Law Enforcement Personnel

Ethical Considerations of Correctional and Law Enforcement Personnel
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The world of law enforcement professionals involves promoting public safety by keeping law and order, arresting criminals, and keeping them locked up away from society. In carrying out these activities, they have to observe specific ethical considerations to maintain the integrity of these systems.
Various ethical considerations confronting correctional personnel.
One of the ethical considerations is inmate abuse. Prisons are an unsafe work environment as one is surrounded by convicted criminals who have committed heinous crimes. While correctional personnel has the upper hand in such establishments, some misuse their powers by exposing prisoners to abuse. Inmate abuse can be in the form of violent assaults through beating, hitting, kicking, or striking defenseless prisoners causing injuries or death (Thompson, 2017). The abuse also encompasses placing inmates in solitary confinement for minor offenses, which endangers their physical and mental health, making it impossible to lead everyday lives (Breslow, 2014).
An inappropriate sexual relationship with prisoners is another ethical issue. Engaging in a sexual relationship with an inmate is an unethical practice, criminalized by the federal law as inmates cannot legally consent to such a relationship; thus, criminal sexual abuse (Lockup USA, 2014). The US Bureau of Justice Statistics documents that 48% of sexual victimization incidents in prisons involve a guard and inmates. Such abuse is detrimental as it leads to the supply of contrabands, victimization of unwilling inmates, exploitation of prisoners, and breakdown of the strong staff relationships and discipline in prison (Mastropasqua, 2015). Consequently, such relationships destroy the natural order of prison systems.
Smuggling of contrabands and questionable money dealings with prisoners are other ethical violations that correctional officers face. The contrabands include items such as drugs, weapons, and cell phones. The temptation to provide such things is high among the personnel due to their high monetary benefits. For instance, a mobile phone costs five hundred dollars, while a pack of cigarettes costs one hundred dollars. These items are outlawed due to the potential risks of violence, drug abuse, deaths, aiding in the plans to escape, and facilitating the commission of crimes outside prison (Pavlo, 2021). Thus, they should remain inaccessible to prisoners.
Comparing and contrasting ethical considerations of correctional and law enforcement personnel.
           Similar ethical considerations guide correctional and law enforcement personnel. One, the two agencies are necessitated to uphold the law and the rights of offenders and prisoners. Correctional and law enforcement officers work in stressful environments characterized by threats of attacks by prisoners and criminals. Nevertheless, the personnel must uphold all people’s civil and legal rights by avoiding discriminating or profiling prisoners or suspects based on their race, gender, religion, or nationality (Pollock, 2021, pp. 293-295). Additionally, they are...