The forgotten voices of #metoo: Prison rape in America - perpetrated by both inmates and staff - remains pervasive and under-reported 15 years after the passage of a law intended to end crisis
Document Type
News Article
Publication Date
12-10-2018
Abstract
The Prison Rape Elimination Act was passed in 2003 and its new guidelines were implemented in 2012.
The new standards under PREA mandated inmate education, medical and mental health care for victims, and investigations of each allegation – all of which experts say has encouraged victims to report sexual abuse.
New guidelines led to more people reporting their rape and more accurate recording: American prisoners made 24,661 formal allegations of sexual assault in 2015 - nearly triple the 8,768 allegations made in 2011.
Despite the strides made under PREA, much remains to be done to end rape in American prisons and jails, with cases of staff-on-inmate sexual assault still emerging from facilities across the country.
Experts say PREA could be improved by adding penalties for facilities that fail to comply with new standards.
Source Publication
Dailymail.com's Social Affairs
Recommended Citation
Smith, Brenda V. and Bauman, Valerie, "The forgotten voices of #metoo: Prison rape in America - perpetrated by both inmates and staff - remains pervasive and under-reported 15 years after the passage of a law intended to end crisis" (2018). Popular Media. 373.
https://digitalcommons.wcl.american.edu/pub_disc_media/373