Denton County Sheriff Reviews

The supervisors and upper brass could care less about their officers. They are more concerned on how they look, then how they do their job. In the jail/booking department, they supervisors are out to get any new officers in the position. They training officers will wright bad reviews about the new officer and the sargents and lieutenants will tell you to your face that the review might not be the truth but they have to take their word for it because they have rank. Very unprofessional and just wrong. Women supervisors don't like it when they get a new female officer and will make things hard on them on purpose to try to make them want to quit. Their procedures for the offices are not always the safest or smartest ideas or methods. The people you work with might not back you up and that is very bad. This is a volatile environment and you need people who are able and willing to help you in a situation since you only have your hands to defend yourself. Only the supervisors carry pepper spray, that is stupid because they are not always there when something happens. All officers should be issued pepper spray. Just because you have rank doesn't mean you are given a way to defend yourself. All officers should be supplied with a means to defend themselves. In the lobby there should be 2 officers to a shift not 1, especially on night shift. You need a back up officer with you so you don't have to wait for someone to come up from the back to help you. Also they have pods set up with 30 inmates to 1 officer, that is stupid. They need to have at lest 2 or 3 officers in each pod. 1 officer could easily be attacked or killed before back up reached them. They need to spend more time on quality training and each new officer should go to jail school first not just be stuck in a pod or put into a position and now know what to do or how to defend themselves. New officer could be working with inmates for up to 6 months before receiving any training on how to defend themselves or how to talk and deal with inmates.

- Staff is severely underpaid and overworked. Every detention officer is expected to accomplish the work of 5 people while abiding to jail standards that are selectively enforced. Denton County routinely foregoes any substantial pay raises for detention staff in favor of other departments that are already well funded. Denton County also failed to provide any kind of support during the pandemic; they denied any raises that year in the name of being fair to other departments that either did not work or worked remotely despite the rising standard of living; they also ended hazard pay after only two to three weeks into the pandemic. By the time I left, most sections were on 12 hour shifts and were expected to work 5 (possibly 6) days a week. - Safety standards are lax due to severe understaffing. Supervisors expect staff to work with inmates without using disciplinary measures when inmates cause disturbances. Inmates are routinely catered to and often sided with by rank over officers. It became so prolific that inmates were emboldened to disrespect staff and not follow any rules set in place, placing the officer in dangerous situations. At the time of my departure, officers were expected to work in General Population Pods with a ratio of 1 officer to 72 inmates, well over the jail standards of 1 officer to 48 inmates. Classification routinely misclassifies inmates and places problem inmates into direct supervision housing even though those particular inmates have proven incapable of staying in such housing, which in turn causes situations (such as fights) that could have been prevented. - Leadership is nonexistent; supervisors (with the exception of a very few) only look out for themselves and show very little empathy towards subordinates. The entire time I worked there, the supervisors I had mostly comprised of authoritarian individuals who micromanaged, showed very little competency, and blatantly exhibited favoritism towards officers whose work ethic was questionable at best. The supervisors do not lead by example and hold their staff to varied standards that are not communicated. As far as they are concerned, their officers are replaceable, even though the supply of new hires is scare or completely nonexistent. - Communication is very lacking between the ranks. I often had to piece together what the appropriate actions were from time to time. It appeared that even the inmates knew things before I was aware of them. There is a very significant disconnect between the higher ranks and officers, in which the higher ranks make severely misinformed decisions without considering how they may affect staff in the immediate or long term future. - The term "promotion" at this agency is a misnomer. Any type of advancement at this agency is actually a completely new position that the employee must apply for and undergo a hiring process consisting of a qualifications check, a background check, and a oral interview. At the same time, particular individuals are picked out for advancement even before undergoing the steps in the process, usually due to who they know over any merit (or lack thereof) they have shown. And even if one is "promoted," there is no substantial pay raise or incentive unless they become a Detention Sergeant or manage to transfer to another division (Ex. Patrol or Communications). With the severe understaffing, a promotion to Corporal (Detention Officer II) is only a title. - Overall, if you elect to join this agency, do not trust or rely on anyone. You are on you're own for the majority of the time and the times you are with other officers or with supervisors it is with a petty, high school mentality that has dominated this place for the longest time. You will be overworked to the point that you have effectively signed your entire life over to them, and would have to sell your soul for any type of advancement. I would not recommend this position or agency to anyone, even my enemies. But if you are in a situation where you have no other choice but to take the job, watch your six at all times and God speed.