Corrections_Today_Summer_2025_Vol.87_No.2

COMMUNICATIONS & PUBLICATIONS

T he American Correctional Association is pleased to offer book reviews. For more information or to become a book reviewer, contact Kirk Raymond at (703) 224-0193 or kraymond@aca.org. Bookshelf

43-year career in the State of Ohio. “My Life of Managing Crime” is a practitioner’s perspective of look ing at the criminal justice system in Ohio from different angles. A good storyteller, he injects both humorous and profound anecdotes about his managerial experiences, and provides valuable insights on ethical dilemmas, career survival, adapting to evolving standards, etc. His researcher – practitioner col laboration with several colleges and universities in Ohio could serve as a model for other states. Not only will residents of Ohio find this book par ticularly fascinating (the sensational Pike County family massacre, the deadly Lucasville prison riot, etc.), this book would be an excellent addition to reading materials for aspiring executives and managers of criminal justice agencies. The book’s major chapters are on Director Stickrath’s experiences working and running the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections (DRC), Ohio Department of Youth Services (DYS), Ohio Department of Public Safety (DPS) and Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification (BCI). Interspersed are informative – and in some cases humorous - chapters on First Ladies, interesting inmates,

difficult employees, sports figures, etc. To a lesser extent – but no less important - the book touches on the realities of public service dealing with legislators, media and lobbyists; the litigious nature and ethical cornerstone of public service; the de-institutionalization of mental health hospitals and its consequential impact on adult and youth corrections, etc. Mr. Stickrath devotes six chapters to adult Corrections, where he served the longest stint in his career. His entry into Corrections was not at the entry level. Rather, he started his career right out of law school as the chief inspector of DRC, where he learned the “intricacies of corrections” (p. 3). He was clearly on the fast track: he became Deputy Warden, Warden, Assistant Director and, later, Director of DRC. He makes the proverbial city-prison management comparison: “Running a prison is somewhat similar to running a city, except you count all your residents six times a day” (p. 16). He believes that managing DRC is a particularly difficult job, as “Correctional agencies are always just an incident away from disaster and bad headlines” (p. 75). He devotes an entire chapter to the Lucasville prison riot in 1993, when nine inmates and one CO were killed

My Life of Managing Crime By Tom Stickrath, J.D., Orange Frazer Press, 2025, 179 pp. REVIEWED BY: Roger Baburam, MPA. Baburam is a retired Corrections Program Director at Minnesota Department of Corrections. W hen everybody is in charge, no one is in charge” seems simple enough, but when this leadership adage is repeatedly invoked and accompanied by specif ic illustrations from Tom Stickrath, it takes on a wisdom of its own. Af ter all, Director Stickrath held three cabinet positions, led a criminal investigation agency and served un der six governors in a distinguished

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Corrections Today | Summer 2025

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