DPS Dispatch

Class 20 became the Class of ’22.

The 20th crop of future leaders in Adult Corrections was supposed to finish the year-long Corrections Leadership Development Program back in 2020. Then COVID-19 struck.

Every day, the more than 2,000 officers of Community Corrections carry out their sometimes unheralded mission as Probation/Parole Officers for the State of North Carolina. 

While you might not have noticed them in your community, they provide critical public service at all hours of the day and night.

It’s hard to imagine a child who’s never experienced the smell of a forest while standing in the middle of a host of majestic trees swaying in the breeze; never experienced the sound of lake waves lapping onto the shore; or felt the joy of overcoming a fear of heights in front of their peers.

That’s the case with many juveniles housed in state youth development centers or juvenile detention centers. However, for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began, more than 40 juveniles enjoyed (some for the first time) a camping experience at Camp Willow Run in Littleton during the week of May 29-June 3.

And the winner is…. A group of Community Corrections employees and partners who dealt with an unprecedented issue that led to a project never before attempted in the department got a special award for their work during the COVID-19 pandemic. The award was presented during the recent North Carolina Probation Parole Association training institute in Durham recently.

The career of a correctional officer is not an easy one. It is a position that has many challenges and requires a sharp focus on safety, professionalism, and integrity in order to keep themselves and those in state-custody safe. It is a role where if done well, they can inspire and help an offender to succeed once released. Right now, finding new correctional officers has been a challenge in North Carolina and across the nation, but one family that has been with the state for a combined total of 70 years has certainly risen to that challenge. Three generations of the Furr family have worked as correctional officers for the state of North Carolina within the Department of Public Safety (DPS). 

On a warm spring morning in early April, Laura Grater, an engineering team lead for the North Carolina Emergency Management Hazard Mitigation section, took her place in a barber’s chair at Raleigh Beer Garden for what some would consider a life changing event.

After a two-year delay caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Reentry Programs and Services successfully hosted the 2022 North Carolina Reentry Conference at the Koury Convention Center in Greensboro on April 26-27. A pre-conference workshop on April 25 focused on effective correctional education strategies that prepare returning citizens for reentry and reduce recidivism.

In her role as warden at Caswell Correctional Center, Doris Daye sees acts of greatness every day. As a leader, she understands just how important it is to recognize and reward employees who go above and beyond their duties.

DPS and Prisons leadership and staff took time today to memorialize correctional employees who have died in the line of duty. The annual observance took place during Correctional Officers and Correctional Employees Week with a ceremony held at the Randall Building in downtown Raleigh.

From the mountains to the sea, law enforcement officers from across North Carolina gathered today at a memorial service for the 30 uniformed men and women who died in the line of duty over the past year.

Every day, criminal justice policymakers across the country make critical decisions that affect the lives and safety of the American public.

Second chances are important for both adults and juveniles who have been involved in the criminal justice system.

How many college interns can say their projects can leave a lasting impact on future youth as they re-enter society after spending time in the state juvenile justice system? Hannah Ridgeway and Julia Husk can say a definitive “Yes,” though neither gave that much of a thought during their recent internship with the Community Programs section of the Division of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.