I had guys on my case load who had perpetrated some really horrifying crimes that they couldn't even remember because they were blacked out when they committed them. When sober, they were funny, interesting, talented, creative, sometimes really smart ... Basically, pretty normal people.
Alcohol can be such a poison, particularly when the user has had a difficult or traumatic childhood, another common denominator among most of the inmates I knew. In the vast majority of cases I dealt with, the victimizer had also been a victim.
Temperamentally, I couldn't continue working in corrections for the long haul because I was just too empathetic. Being put in the position of simultaneously being designated a counselor and a corrections officer was untenable for me. I wanted people to trust me enough to open up in our one-on-ones, but as a CO I was expected to report much of what they told me. I just couldn't do that. Room shakedowns weren't my thing; I wanted to leave the "busting" to the more going-ho officers. 
. It was definitely a learning experience, though.
A couple weeks after I quit, I received a card in the mail signed by probably 25 or 30 of the inmates I had counseled saying how much they missed talking to me and how I had helped. I was touched, and I've kept it all these years.
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