More prison guards 'would prevent relationships with inmates'

An experienced former prison governor has blamed cost-cutting for compromising staff after two former guards were charged over alleged relationships with inmates.

Pole dancer, model and actor Tara Brooks was fired from her job as a prison guard after she allegedly sent a Valentine's Day card to convicted drug dealer Hassan Zreika in Sydney's Parklea Correctional Centre.

Police will allege Brooks used a fake name on the card, but that it was traced back to her post office box.

Brooks, 33, is the first person to be charged under new laws governing misconduct by corrections officers which jeopardises safety.

She did not comment on the matter when approached by A Current Affair.

Another former guard, Amy Connors, is also before the courts after being accused of having a sexual relationship with cop killer Sione Penisini at Kempsey Jail on the New South Wales mid-north coast.

Connors, who worked as a guard for 14 years, was charged with misconduct in public office, prompting the NSW government to tighten its grip on the issue.

Late last year, it passed legislation making it a crime to have any type of affair with a prisoner.

Former Grafton Jail governor John Heffernan said the issue made him "very angry".

With 30 years of working inside prisons under his belt, he said he was appalled by any corrections officer who crossed the line.

"They could be attracted to the bad-boy image, they could have low self-esteem and the first person that shows them any attention could be that inmate," he said.

"Even though they're grooming them, they don't realise and they fall for the trap."

He said prisoners were "never" satisfied just to have a relationship with a prison staffer, but would use that connection as a lever to procure drugs or weapons and put other staff at risk.

Mr Heffernan claimed cost-cutting was compromising both staff and their prisoners.

"They're trimming staff. Not as many staff are on the ground as there should be, and experienced staff are leaving the department," he said.

"And experienced staff are the officers that are very conscious of these types of relationships, and they pick up on them fairly quickly."

But he said it was only a "select few" that spoiled it for the rest.

"And they are literally despised when they cross the line and get themselves in a situation where they put other officers at risk," he said.

If convicted, Brooks could be sentenced to two years in jail.

Criminal lawyer Richard Mitry said the laws were important given officers were in a position of power.

"The inmate could be targeting this prison officer for a long time, and if the officer caves and they enter into the relationship, they're still at fault," he said.