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Home | Corrections | Prison Rape Elimination Act (Sexual Violence in Correctional Facilities)
Prison Rape Elimination Act (Sexual Violence in Correctional Facilities)
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On September 4, 2003, the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003 (PREA or the Act) was signed by President George W. Bush (Public Law 108-79).

The Act requires the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) to –

  • "carry out, for each calendar year, a comprehensive statistical review and analysis of the incidence and effects of prison rape"
  • "include, but not be limited to the identification of the common characteristics of — (A) both victims and perpetrators of prison rape; and (B) prisons and prison systems with a high incidence of prison rape".
  • Utilize "a random sample, or other scientifically appropriate sample, of not less than 10 percent of all Federal, State, and county prisons, and a representative sample of municipal prisons"
  • "use surveys and other statistical studies of current and former inmates"
  • provide "a listing of those institutions in the representative sample, separated into each category ... and ranked according to the incidence of prison rape in each institution" and "a listing of any prisons in the representative sample that did not cooperate with the survey."

The Act applies to all correctional facilities, including prisons, jails, juvenile facilities, military and Indian country facilities, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facilities. Due to the sensitive nature of violent victimization and potential reluctance to report sexual assault, there is no single measure upon which to rely to estimate the prevalence of such acts. Thus, BJS developed the National Prison Rape Statistics Program (NPRSP), a series designed to collect multiple measures on the incidence and prevalence of sexual assault. There was no existing data collection that could be used to fully respond to the requirements in the Act. BJS, with the aid of correctional practitioners, researchers, and special interest groups, developed, tested, and revised each collection prior to full national implementation. For these reasons, the data collections have been rolled out consecutively rather than concurrently and each collection is in a different stage of implementation.

NPRSP includes five separate data collection efforts: the Survey on Sexual Violence (SSV), the National Inmate Survey (NIS), the National Survey of Youth in Custody (NSYC), the Former Prisoner Survey (FPS), and Clinical Indicators of Sexual Violence in Custody (CISVC). Each of these collections is an independent effort and, while not directly comparable, will provide various measures of the prevalence and characteristics of sexual assault in correctional facilities. Incidents reported to or observed by correctional or medical officials collected in the SSV and CISVC administrative records survey may be an under-representation of actual incidents. Allegations made anonymously by inmates and youth in the NIS, NSYC, and FPS may be an over-representation of actual incidents, although it is possible this over-reporting is offset by some victims who, despite the protocols enacted to assure confidentiality and encourage reporting, remain fearful of retribution or ridicule and fail to report sexual victimization. By using more than one method and measure the data collections can together provide a deeper understanding of sexual victimization in correctional facilities. For additional information, see the corrections data collections.

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Terms & Definitions

Abusive sexual contacts Unwanted contacts with another inmate or any contacts with staff that involved touching of the inmate's buttocks, thigh, penis, breasts, or vagina in a sexual way.
 
Federal prisons Prison facilities run by the Federal Bureau of Prisons. Prisoners housed in these facilities are under the legal authority of the federal government. This definition excludes the private facilities that are under exclusive contract with BOP.
 
Nonconsensual sexual acts Unwanted contacts with another inmate or any contacts with staff that involved oral, anal, or vaginal penetration, handjobs, and other sexual acts.
 
Prison Compared to jail facilities, prisons are longer-term facilities owned by a state or by the Federal Government. Prisons typically hold felons and persons with sentences of more than a year; however, the sentence length may vary by state. Six states (Connecticut, Rhode Island, Vermont, Delaware, Alaska, and Hawaii) have an integrated correctional system that combines jails and prisons. There are a small number of private prisons, facilities that are run by private prison corporations whose services and beds are contracted out by state or federal governments.
 
Sexual victimization/sexual assault/sexual violence All types of sexual activity, e.g., oral, anal, or vaginal penetration; handjobs; touching of the inmate¿s buttocks, thighs, penis, breasts, or vagina in a sexual way; abusive sexual contacts; and both willing and unwilling sexual activity with staff.
 
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