Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003

The Basics of PREA

PREA was signed into law on Sept 4, 2003 by

President Bush in order to address the

prevention of sexual assault in correctional

systems.

Under PREA, the National Prison Rape Elimination Act

Commission (NPRC) was created with the

responsibility of establishing the standards for prevention,

detection, response, and monitoring of sexual abuse

and violence within correctional systems.

Nine years after the passage of PREA, the

standards were finalized in May of

2012 with an effective date of August 20,

2012

The Purpose of PREA is to:•Establish zero – tolerance for the incidence of sexual abuse of inmates

•Develop, establish, and implement national standards of guide operations

•Institute national data collection on incidents of sexual abuse of inmates

•Standardize definitions of prohibited behaviors•Increase accountability of corrections personal responsible for the custody of inmates

•Fund program and research

PREA is not a criminal law but sets the bar for how

agencies can best prevent, detect, and respond to

sexual abuse of inmates.

Complying with PREA standards however will

present the opportunity to better achieve the ethical responsibility to protect

inmates in our care, custody and control.

There are two separate categories for types of

sexual abuse of inmates.

1.Sexual abuse of an inmate by another inmate

2.Sexual abuse of an inmate by a staff member, contractor, or volunteer.

Sexual contact in any form between staff

members, contractors, and volunteers with an inmate is a violation of PREA. It is also a crime

under Indiana law.

Your state law that pertains to staffand inmate sexual contact goes

here

This means there will be NO physical contact between

staff, contractors, volunteers and inmates other than

handshakes in this facility.

This shall include NO hugging of

inmates.

All staff, contractors and volunteers in this facility are MANDATORY reporters. You

must report immediately any knowledge, suspicion, or

information regarding sexual abuse within the facility.

Reporting information from your facility can go

here.

Some possible Red Flags of sexual abuse or misconduct:

Inmate with Inmate:• Change in appearance

• Change in mood• Recent physical injuries

Inmate with Staff or Volunteers:

• Inmate receiving special privileges• Inmate knowing personal information

• Inappropriate language or conversations

Without reporting what you suspect or know about

sexual abuse or the potential for sexual abuse, you break the chain to prevention and

effective response.

Failing to report also compromises the safety

and security of staff, inmates and the entire

facility.

NO information about sexual abuse shall be

revealed to anyone other than supervisors and

investigators except to the extent necessary.

ALWAYS REMEMBER THAT YOU’RE A

PROFESSIONAL AND HAVE ETHICAL BOUNDRIES!

ANY QUESTIONS?