The president of the union representing corrections officers is demanding action after a guard was killed on Christmas Day in Ohio.
Officer Andrew Lansing died Wednesday after an inmate assault at Ross Correctional Institution in Chillicothe, according to the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections. Lansing’s death is a “horrendous and heart-wrenching” reminder of what corrections officers face on the job, said Chris Mabe, president of the Ohio Civil Service Employees Association.
But, Mabe said too many people see the risk of death and injury as just part of the job for corrections officers. After the latest death, that needs to change once and for all, he said.
“We’re going to insist and demand on accountability,” Mabe told The Dispatch on Wednesday. “We’re demanding action from the governor’s office.”
The first issue that must be addressed is staffing, Mabe said. Corrections facilities were long understaffed before the COVID-19 pandemic and shortages have continued in the years since, Mabe said.
Between employees who are off and position vacancies, Ross Correctional Institution was short-staffed by as many as 40 officers as of Wednesday, Mabe said. Mabe said he believed many working Christmas Day were also likely working overtime to help cover staffing shortages.
To attract more people to work in corrections, Mabe said higher pay is needed to reflect the dangers that officers face. Mabe also said drug use and violence has been on the rise in state corrections facilities.
Read More:Ross Correctional Institution officer killed on Christmas Day after inmate assault
If all three issues are handled, Mabe said he believes tragedies such as Lansing’s death could be prevented.
“Our worst fears have come true once again: An officer was murdered on Christmas Day,” Mabe said. “We think these kinds of things can be avoided in this department.”
While Lansing’s death was the result of an inmate assault, further details were not released Wednesday by the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections. The Ohio State Highway Patrol is expected to investigate Lansing’s death.
The Dispatch has reached out to the state patrol and the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections for comment.
Mabe is the second corrections officer to die in 2024. Lt. Rodney Osborne from the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction’s Southern Ohio Correctional Facility was killed during a training exercise in April.
“The loss of a staff person is difficult, but to lose a family member on Christmas Day at the hands of someone in our custody is a tragedy beyond comprehension,” ODRC Director Annette Chambers-Smith said in a prepared statement. “Instead of going home after his shift to be with his family on this holiday, Officer Lansing made the ultimate sacrifice.”
mfilby@dispatch.com
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