I Was a Rikers Island Prison Guard — Then I Got Fired | Nick Gojcaj

Nick Gojcaj grew up in Queens dreaming of becoming an NYPD cop, but after that didn’t work out, he spent 20 years in the corporate world before making a drastic career change in his 40s—joining Rikers Island as a corrections officer. For three years he worked inside one of America’s most notorious jails, dealing with chaos, violence, and the daily dangers of being a prison guard, until a confrontation with inmates left him permanently disabled. Instead of protecting him, Rikers illegally terminated his job, sparking a legal battle that he’s still fighting today. In this episode, Nick opens up about his journey from the academy to life on the inside, the shocking realities of working at Rikers, and how he’s now exposing the system that betrayed him. #RikersIsland #PrisonGuard #CorrectionsOfficer #NYCPrisons #RikersStories #PrisonLife #LawEnforcement #CorruptionExposed Hosted, Executive Produced & Edited By Ian Bick: https://www.instagram.com/ian_bick/?hl=en https://ianbick.com/ Presented by Tyson 2.0 & Wooooo Energy: https://tyson20.com/ https://woooooenergy.com/ Use code LOCKEDIN for 20% OFF Wooooo Energy Buy Merch: http://www.ianbick.com/shop Timestamps: 00:00 Prison Realities and Riker's Introduction 00:19 Nick's Unusual Career Path 01:51 Favorite Episodes and Influential People 03:21 Union Perks, Disability, and Department Politics 04:23 Growing Up: Family and Childhood Influences 05:21 School Trouble and Early Aspirations 06:12 Drinking, Gambling, and Avoiding Trouble 08:09 Crime, Arrests, and a Flawed System 09:49 Stable Home vs. Turbulent Friends 10:57 From College Hopes to Law Enforcement Dreams 13:09 College Life and NYPD Rejection 14:35 Corporate World: Two Decades Lost 16:08 Career Pivot: Joining Corrections at 44 17:43 Correctional Academy: Training Realities 20:08 Academy vs. Real World at Rikers 22:47 Early Days on the Job & Learning from Inmates 26:03 Systemic Issues: Contraband, Corruption, and Challenges 29:39 Schedules, Overtime, and Hidden Job Hazards 33:09 Facing Reality: Dangerous Shifts, Staff Politics 36:14 Respect, Dignity, and Handling Inmates 39:41 Violence, Use of Force, and Officer Dilemmas 43:00 The Incident and Long-Term Injury 47:34 Aftermath: Desk Duty, Recovery, and Abrupt Firing 53:46 Legal Fight and Alleged Retaliation 58:39 Department Corruption and Favoritism 01:02:02 Lawsuit, Motivation, and Moving Forward 01:06:10 Advice, Support, and Closing Thoughts Powered by: Just Media House : https://www.justmediahouse.com/ Creative direction, design, assets, support by FWRD: https://www.fwrd.co Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices