by Tom Redden
Joe Murphy was anxious to get to work. He had a monumental task ahead of him and looked forward to the challenge.
Joe was 41 years old and in terrific shape. He stood 6' tall, 195 pounds, brown hair, blue eyes and a solid muscular build. He worked out at the gym several times a week in addition to taking martial arts classes. He had a lot of free time since his divorce several years ago and volunteered helping others in his community.
Joe grew up in a strict household and always strived to follow the rules. His parents believed in discipline and he got his fair share of spankings when younger for pulling shenanigans. Those spankings helped mold him into the good man he was today. Joe was a big believer in doing the right thing, and spanking was now his discipline of choice. He was sure that would come in handy in his new job.
Joe smiled as he looked in the mirror. He'd worked his way up from the ranks of prison guard to senior prison guard to assistant warden, and now had his first job as a warden. His first day was going to be interesting at this all women's correctional facility.
Joe walked past the whispering guards, curious staff and sneering prisoners. He met his administrative assistant, Sandy Brady, as soon as he entered his office.
"Sandy, would you please get me a cup of coffee with milk and one sugar?" he asked, gauging her reaction as she stood at his desk.
"Yes Sir," she respectfully answered and without hesitation. "Would you like anything else?"
Joe's instincts were right. He had read her personnel file and it was impeccable. She was loyal, confident, efficient and well organized. Her one negative comment in the file was that she was too opinionated but not to the point of being rude. Joe could read a person extremely well just from looking in their eyes. He liked what he saw and immediately trusted and respected her.
He nodded. "Yes Sandy. Please get yourself some coffee too. Then come in and let's chat."
Sandy was surprised at the invitation. She smiled and said, "Yes Sir."
When she sat down, Joe said, "OK Sandy, a few ground rules and things to cover. When we are alone, please call me Joe. If people are around, you can call me Warden, Sir or Mr. Murphy. I want us to have a good working relationship and I'm going to really depend on you. Does that work for you?"
Sandy nodded. "Yes Sir... I mean Joe. I understand and will always show you respect."
"From what I hear about this place, you're probably the only person at this point who will. But I promise you, things will change."
Sandy smiled, realizing Joe knew about all the trouble and turmoil in the facility. "Yes, there are quite a few challenges," she said.
Joe raised an eyebrow. He liked Sandy's subtle hinting approach. "Really? Just challenges? Ha! Ok, another thing. I don't expect you to get my morning coffee every day."
"I don't mind, Joe."
"Thank you, Sandy. It's not one of your job functions but I appreciate it and will return the favor too. I believe in working together as a team and doing things for each other. I know I have a long way to go to prove myself. It appears the last warden just let everyone do what they wanted and didn't provide structure and education. There were also a lot of shady things going on, and all that's going to stop."
Sandy was intrigued. "This correctional facility has one of the worst reputations in the state," she told him. "Truth be told, I was thinking about leaving and finding a job somewhere else. There's trouble here everyday; fights break out, and well... there just doesn't seem to be, er..."
Joe shook his head. "Sandy, you don't ever have to hold back with me. I already know about most of the nonsense, things that the guards are doing or rather not doing. I know about the 'special treatment' with some of the residents. I call them residents, not prisoners. I know about the intimidation and bullying tactics by some residents and by the guards, the special 'deals', and the constant arguments and fights. There's going to be a lot of changes and new rules introduced. I'm not going to be the most popular person around here, especially on my first day."
Sandy quizzically asked, "And just how are you going to change things? It can be a zoo around here. And like I said, this place has the worst reputation in the state."
Joe gave a wry smile. "Discipline. That's what this place is lacking. Rules and discipline."
Sandy saw the stern look in his eyes that went along with his calmness and confidence. "You mean corporal punishment kind of discipline?" she asked.
Joe nodded. "Yes, corporal punishment. More specifically, spankings. There will be new rules and expectations. The governor has given me full jurisdiction with this place. Since corporal punishment is still allowed in this state, it will be used."
Sandy's jaw dropped. "You're going to spank the prisoners? I mean the residents?"
Joe drummed his fingers on the desk as he glanced at the clock. "It will go for everyone. If people want to work here, they can either conform or leave. There needs to be accountability and consequences. Residents will be expected to follow the rules. Guards, nurses, psychologists and staff will be expected to follow the rules. Or there will be some very sore bottoms in this place."
Sandy's face turned red. "Spankings, like over the knee spankings? You said staff too will receive discipline?"
"Yes, Sandy. Bare bottom, over the knee spankings. You will witness some and hear others," Joe chuckled. "Hopefully you'll be on the right side of the paddle."
Sandy bit her lower lip and her eyes opened wide. "Wait, you'd really spank me?"
"If I had to, then yes I would."
Sandy stared at him, but with an approving look of respect. "Well ok then, let's hope I don't give you a reason to do so. I haven't been spanked in over 20 years."
"No one is ever too old, young lady. Anyway, let's talk about this place..."
That 'young lady' comment sent a jolt through Sandy like when her dad gave her that certain look to behave, or else.
Joe and Sandy talked for nearly an hour and exchanged information and thoughts on the current state of the place. Joe shared the fact that he believed in rehabilitating the residents, but said there also needed to be consequences for bad decisions. Sandy told him many of the things she felt were way out of control. Sandy felt an immediate sense of loyalty and comfort for her new boss. She was cautiously optimistic for the future.
The unscheduled staff meeting had people talking and there was a buzz around the place. There was a lot of whispering and rumors were flying all morning.
"Who is this guy?"
"Rumor has it that he's a pushover."
"If he thinks he is going to change anything, he's sadly mistaken."
"He's going to learn the way things are done around here and fall in line."
"We'll show him, many of us have been here for years..."
There were many more comments like these from other prison guards. In total, there were 25 female guards and 6 male guards in addition to the nurse, chaplain, psychologist and other administrative staff.
Joe walked into the conference room and nodded at Sandy. "Thank you, Ms. Brady. I appreciate your help in arranging to get everyone together."
"You're welcome, Mr. Murphy," responded Sandy.
Joe turned to the staff. "Good morning everyone. My name is Joe Murphy and I've been appointed as your new warden. I hope we can work together. We will be talking about some ideas and changes I have in mind. But first, I have a couple pieces of business." He took out a piece of paper and said, "Will the following guards please stand: Officer Smith, Officer Miller, Officer Easton and Officer Johnson."
The four female guards all stood with a curious look.
"What's going on?" asked Miller.
Joe looked from guard to guard and stared them in the eye. "You're fired," he informed them. "We don't sell narcotics in this place. This is a correctional facility, not a drug zone. Your union reps have been advised and they're waiting outside. Good day, Officers."
"I'll sue your ass, you bastard," Miller yelled, seething with shock and anger.
Smith screamed, "You can't do this, you asshole! Who the hell do you think you are? You won't get away with it."
The other two officers stared with blank looks on their faces. There was a gasp and then the room was so silent that you could have heard a pin drop.
Joe calmly said, "Actually, I can do this and I just did. I had some camera equipment installed in the main corridors for security purposes when I was appointed two days ago. I have you four on tape clearly exchanging narcotics for money. Feel free to sue, and in turn, you'll all be charged with possession, intent to distribute and a whole list of other felony charges. And you can then join the other residents. Wouldn't that be nice? Now, I suggest you leave without another word or I'll take the next step. If you think for one second that I'm bluffing, try me! Goodbye, Officers."
Everyone looked on with stunned disbelief. Sandy tried to keep a poker face as she thought, 'Wow, he really is going to make changes. So cool, calm and collected, and he doesn't get rattled. I like his style.'
The four guards left the room without incident, turned in their badges and left the facility with their representatives. They each knew they were busted and were lucky they weren't arrested.
Joe turned to the remaining staff. "Sorry, but we needed to get that out of the way. There are another couple of officers that I need to speak with on other matters but I can do that in the next few days. Let me be clear, I want to work together as a team. That means everyone, including me, needs to do their job. It doesn't mean selling drugs or alcohol or turning your head the other way when you see something wrong. Every resident and staff member needs to be treated with respect and dignity."
One of the guards said, "Warden, with all due respect, these are dangerous criminals and they need to be controlled."
Joe didn't miss a beat. "I agree there are some bad apples here and we will deal with them. Many of the residents here just made bad choices. I completely understand the reasons they have been sentenced to this facility. But I also believe it is our job to help rehabilitate them so they have a sense of worth when they get out and hopefully turn their life around. We'll be having more meetings about that over the next few weeks. If anyone disagrees with my approach, feel free to make an appointment through Ms. Brady so we can chat. And for anyone completely opposed to my approach, you are certainly free to leave."
Another officer added, "This isn't a country club, Warden. The prisoners are here to be punished for their crimes."
Joe said, "I agree in concept. And I'm glad you mentioned punishment. Let's talk about some changes, and about corporal punishment. If there's a reason to punish a resident while they are here, let's meet and discuss it. I'm a firm believer in discipline, but delivered for the right reasons and in the correct manner. There will inevitably be times where punishment is necessary. And there will be some sore bottoms as a result."
Joe had their full attention.
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