ALFRED — Ask Corporal Stephen Kurtz about the folks he is employed to watch over at York County Jail and he’ll tell you this:

“It’s all how you want to look at these inmates. They’re not bad people; they’ve made bad choices.”

Kurtz, who retired from the U.S. Navy in 2000, has been a corrections officer at York County Jail for nearly seven years. He worked the previous seven years in corrections, too, at the Comal County Sheriff’s Office in Texas, where he achieved the rank of sergeant.

Last month, the Maine Sheriff’s Association named Kurtz Corrections Officer of the Year. It is an achievement he is proud of.

And so is Sheriff Bill King, who nominated Kurtz, 59, for the award.

King said Kurtz is a model and inspiration to young corrections officers.

“Corporal Kurtz is very conscientious as he goes about his duties every day,” said King. “Although corrections work can get mundane, Kurtz never allows himself to lapse into a nonchalant mindset.”

That keen awareness was evident on Jan. 10, when Kurtz was assigned to the Intake sector, where inmates are initially brought and paperwork is processed before they are assigned to specific housing units within the jail.

He heard a trash can being knocked over in a bathroom and went to investigate. He found an inmate attempting to hang himself. Kurtz said he was able to grasp the inmate by the legs and relieve the pressure, while another corrections officer, Alex Kublansvsky, removed the sweatshirt band the fellow had used as a noose.

A life was saved that day.

Kurtz said the inmate, who had only arrived at the jail a couple of hours before, thanked him several times.

Released from jail, Kurtz said the fellow is doing fine now, as far as he is aware.

Kurtz didn’t set out to spend his working years in the corrections field; but it suits him.

He chose the Navy, and a senior chief asked if he’d be interested in the corrections field. He said, “Sure,” and he’s been keeping an eye ”“ and an ear ”“ on inmates ever since.

Those incarcerated at county jails are short timers ”“ sentenced to a few months behind bars ”“ or are awaiting trial and are unable to make bail, or are ineligible for bail.

Kurtz spends a lot of time talking to those in his charge. And he tells them in order to make sure they don’t come back for another stretch, they have to change their behavior. He tells them they need a plan for when they’re released to avoid lapsing back into the behavior that landed them there originally.

They’ve got to figure out what they want, what they’re willing to do to get it, and plan ahead, he said.

He said some inmates he works with ask for help.

“You have to be open-minded,” said Kurtz in a Tuesday morning interview at the jail after his midnight shift. “They’re human beings. Their behavior got them in here.”

He said he tells inmates that when they get out, there will be crossroads in their life. They can be with their families and conduct themselves so they’re not likely to return, or “they can come back and visit me.”

“I believe that if an inmate changes their behavior then his or her thinking and feeling will change and (they’ll) want to become a better person,” Kurtz said. “Working in this field demands that you treat every inmate with a fair, firm and impartial approach at all times. I lead the staff under my charge expecting all officers to follow my example. Integrity is my top requirement when working in the field.”

Of course, it’s not all roses. Sometimes Kurtz, who exudes confidence and calm, finds he and an inmate are at odds. On the following day, he’ll ask the inmate how he’s doing.

“You have to approach every day as a new day,” Kurtz said.

— Senior Staff Writer Tammy Wells can be contacted at 324-4444 (local call in Sanford) or 282-1535, ext. 327 or [email protected].