To get your props in the yard

[Chicken Sandwich]

Jake: Hey, Dad, when you got arrested for shoplifting, did they take you to jail?

Alan: I did not get arrested, and there was no jail.

Jake: So I guess you never had to shank a guy to get your props in the yard.

To shank someone means to stab someone. But what does to "get your props in the yard" mean?

prop 2 noun [ countable ]

1 an object placed under or against something to hold it in a particular position
2 [ usually plural ] a small object such as a book, weapon etc, used by actors in a play or film : Anna looks after costumes and props.
stage props

3 something or someone that helps you to feel strong : She was becoming an emotional prop for him.

4 informal a propeller
5 ( also prop forward ) one of the players in a rugby team, who is large and strong and holds up the scrum





Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English

Does any of those definitons apply here?

Thanks

 

[Drear Pooson]

Not a teacher. (Or a jailbird.)

"props" = "proper respect"

The "yard" is the prison yard.

Because he was never incarcerated, Jake never had to commit any random acts of violence in order to make other prisoners respect him.