Jeff,
Its a job I used to have and dont have the slightest desire to work in the profession or CJ field again. However I do have much respect for those that work in locked facilities over thoses that work on the roads. I think "safe" is a relative term. Like sometimes a stolen pencil in the wrong hands can mean life or death for a juvenile correctional officer. I had back up whenever I needed it with a radio and plenty of cameras. Basically, my main tools were my pen, paper, and my voice. I did have to always watch my back and I felt that the support in my facility was lacking so I left after 3 months. I definitely learned and took a lot from that job and gained a lot of insight of what it feels like to clock in and clock out of a locked environment. Its not like the felons are the only ones locked up. Anyways, yeah, it was a safer environment in some ways I guess compared to schools. Now, I'm in a job ten times better than that and pay is way better too.
Kevin