Corruption Behind Bars: Stories of Crime and Corruption in Our American Prison System

by Gary York

This book contains 41 chapters of prison crime involving  inmate abuse, drug smuggling, sexual relations, embezzlement, prison rape and murder. From the Head Commander of the Department of Corrections, down to the inmates, you will learn of their involvement with prison crime and corruption. You will see how a once respected agency was destroyed and became known as the "Department of Corruption". The purpose of this book is to educate and inform. Message from the Author, "Stay out of prison", life in the free world is much better and not harmful to your health and mental state.

298 pages, Paperback

First published May 23, 2012

Reviews

[Cherryl Northcutt Valdez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding! I loved his stories and that he told of the outcomes of the individuals6

[Chrissy Fischetti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love This...

[Tracey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having never worked in the prison system, I respect those who do. I can’t imagine the discipline required to perform the duties as a correction officer. In Gary York’s book, Corruption Behind Bars: Stories of Crime and Corruption in our American Prison System, York tells of his life as a prison inspector, investigating criminal, civil and administrative misconduct in state prisons. This book is a collection of his stories from inside the correctional system, of corrupt staff members, from prison guards to prison maintenance workers. Each chapter tells of a story that York has investigated, from guards falling in love with the inmates they are supervising, to rape and murder charges being brought against prison staff.
Most of the stories are of Florida prison systems or those in the Southeastern United States. Some of the stories York tells are how the correction facilities workers sometimes act like “family” to cover up or hide wrongdoings of other “family” members. Rarely, when caught, is it one officer who is terminated from his position. Also, within the prisoner population there is a great deal of contraband items being bartered. Cigarettes, makeup, lingerie, alcohol, drugs, sex, all have a value in the system among the prisoners. When it is the prison’s staff who bring in these items from outside, York tells how the staff uses these items to barter among the inmates as well. Law enforcement officers are frequently caught up in the exchange: wanting a relationship, drugs or just furniture. At the end of some of York’s more juicy tales, he has provided weblinks to newspaper accounts of the stories.
The reader should not be looking for any cohesive plot line; this is merely a collection of stories. The book is easy to read, as each story of corruption comprises a chapter in the book. There are parts that could use professional editing to clean up some of the writing, but it didn’t distract from the book in its entirety. I can almost imagine York at a cocktail party telling his stories and having friends say, “With all of the stories you can tell, you need to write a book.” And that, he did.
If you have a family member in the correctional system, know of someone in the prison system, or just enjoy investigative stories of corruption and secrecy, you will enjoy Gary York’s Corruption Behind Bars.