The Prison Rape Elimination Act, passed into law last year, will soon begin to have an impact on correctional agencies across the country. The act, which calls for a range of measures including an evaluation of the prison rape problem as well as the development of national standards for corrections, will ultimately change the way prison rape is prevented, recorded and dealt with.

Top on the list of activities is the survey of prisoners from across the country in adult, juvenile and jail facilities and of former inmates to determine the prevalence of sexual assault among this incarcerated population. The participants and the facilities will all be chosen randomly.

"The ultimate goal is, one, to truly and finally get valid and reliable data on a very misunderstood and confusing institutional culture. Once we have that very reliable set of information, it will be utilized in assessing and perhaps modifying policies and practices," said Richard Tewksbury a Professor at the University of Louisville who is working with the Bureau of Justice Statistics to implement the surveys.

Because previous research on institutional sexual assault has been conducted with limited  population sizes and has used self-reporting, researchers believe that the results have not been completely accurate. With the randomized survey, officials hope they will get a truer sense of the extent of sexual assault problems during incarceration.

Measuring Sexual Assault and Rape

Tewksbury, who is part of the team developing the questionnaire, said he expects the first round of surveys to begin in early 2005. When they do, the inmates surveyed will use a computerized recording system called Audio Computer-Assisted Self Interviews. This methodology will involve inmates responding to questions using a touch screen and following audio instructions from headphones.

BJS researchers hope that this method will enhance the inmates' willingness to report sensitive information and allow offenders with limited literacy to participate.

The surveys will ask offenders about several categories of sexual assault including completed non-consensual sexual acts, attempted non-consensual sexual acts and abusive sexual contacts. In addition, the survey will distinguish between sexual acts involving other inmates and sexual acts involving staff.

In an attempt to analyze the validity of responses, the surveys will also ask about types of victimization other than sexual assault.

"[The survey] will include a range of questions about institutional culture, individuals' experiences in their facilities and in that will be included measures of sexual behavior that they have engaged in," said Tewksbury.

Corrections facilities that are randomly selected should expect to see a data collection team on site for a short period some requests for assistance from the research team, Tewksbury said.

From these surveys, BJS will produce a report and results annually and will identify the top three institutions with the highest rates of sexual victimization as well as the three lowest. Representatives from those facilities will be requested to meet with the Prison Rape Commission, which was appointed as part of the PREA.

In addition, BJS intends to begin an administrative records collection for all federal and state prison systems as well as a representative sample of jails to determine such information as: the number of reported incidents of inmate-on-inmate sexual violence and staff-on-inmate sexual misconduct, by gender; how systems record that information; what information is recorded; where the incidents occur and what additional data are available.

This information will help officials to understand what corrections officials know about sexual assault and violence in their facilities. Then, the next step will be helping agencies identify strategies for improving their response and preventing sexual assault and violence altogether.

PREA Training

As part of the funding associated with the implementation of PREA, the National Institute of Corrections was awarded a contract to establish training on this subject.

The Moss Group, headed by Andie Moss, will create this training as part of a cooperative agreement. Already NIC has held videoconferences on PREA and additional training opportunities will be available as well.

According to Moss, the information provided to staff on this issue has to come across in just the right way. She acknowledges that many staff may be worried about false allegations from inmates and how that will affect them individually.

"We want to come from an informational place," she said. "[Agencies] should have small classes so [staff] can talk about it."

"[The period] of false allegations shouldn't last very long [and] there's hell to pay for bringing false allegations," she added.

Moss also suggests that agencies begin to look closely at their investigative units to make sure that staff understand how they work and what their job is.

"During in-service training, demystify the investigation process and hold inmates and staff accountable. If you don't have a good investigative process, there will be a problem," she said.

 Moss likened the attention now paid to sexual violence in prison to that given to use of force in the 1980s and believes that it will encourage a culture change in corrections.

"This has to do with culture shift and get[ting] people to acknowledge that it does happen. It's the people who have the keys, not just the inmates," she said.

Also as part of PREA, states have been awarded funds to begin to make changes in their agencies and deal with the issue of sexual violence.

Michigan Makes Improvements

The topics of sexual misconduct and sexual violence are well known by corrections officials in Michigan. The Department of Corrections in the late 90's settled a major lawsuit brought by the Department of Justice regarding the treatment of female offenders in Michigan's women's prison.

As part of the settlement, the DOC made changes to its staff training and policies and procedures. Now, thanks to grant money from the Bureau of Justice Assistance in conjunction with PREA, Michigan and other states are taking a look at their training and responses related to inmate rape and sexual assault.

"Basically what we are proposing is to offer training to increase staff and prisoner sensitivity and awareness of offender victimization. We are looking at improving our assessments of those who are vulnerable and assessments of predatory sexual aggressors," said Nancy Zang, Special Administrator, Corrections Facilities Administration for the Michigan DOC.

With the $1 million grant, the DOC will look to include in its training curriculum for medical and mental health staff and investigators information about vulnerable offenders and sexual predators.

It also plans to revise its assessment screening tools to better target potential victims and predators.

"Since 1999 we have had an intake screen in place in the women's facilities that focuses on prior sexual assault and violence. We are looking to make refinements and developing an intake screening instrument that would hone in on vulnerable inmates," said Zang.

Zang said that these changes are an important step to improving safety in correctional institutions.

"I think any correctional administrator would be in agreement that we want to ensure a safe environment. The safer a prison is, the safer it is for inmates and staff. We are talking not only about prisoner-on-prisoner rape, but also about what occurs between staff and prisoners," she said.

Zang said that Michigan and others states have realized that this issue is a major one for their agencies and deserves attention. With this in mind, Michigan will also be reviewing its policies and procedures to make sure they reflect best practices for dealing with sexual assault and misconduct.

"We need to make sure the policies are crystal clear. So that if someone got off the space ship they could read the policy and understand what it meant," she said. "With what Michigan is doing, and the other states are doing, we will be able, at a national level to share some things that will benefit everyone."

Louisiana Expands Prison Rape Training Efforts

The Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections, too, is taking a closer look at the training and education it offers to staff and inmates regarding prison rape.

Like the Michigan DOC, the agency received a PREA grant for nearly a million dollars to put toward protecting inmates behind prison walls and improving safety in communities.  While a portion of the money is going towards re-entry initiatives, DPS&C Undersecretary Trey Boudreaux said about 40 percent of it will be used to address the issue of prison rape.

Although there is some training and education about prison rape already taking place in Louisiana's correctional facilities, Boudreaux said the agency plans to use this funding to add to current initiatives.

"We want to have a more focused effort and better education [surrounding this issue]," said Boudreaux.  "I think this is going to enhance what we are doing."

Presently, inmates are educated about prison rape during their intake and there are inmate groups on the tiers that discuss the issue.  Also, some training is in place for investigators and classification officers so they know what signs to look for when researching incidents or classifying offenders.

In addition, Boudreaux said, there is an effort underway in Louisiana, separate from the PREA grant, to train staff regarding sexual assaults in correctional facilities.  With help from the National Institute of Corrections, the agency is creating some training programs to educate employees about staff-on-inmate sexual assaults, inmate-on-staff incidents and inmate-on-inmate assaults.

"It's more of a sexual misconduct training that we are gearing up," Boudreaux said. 

But the PREA grant will provide training and education for both inmates and staff beyond that, he said.

Upon final approval from the grant office, the agency plans to implement five new training modules focused on prison rape.  The DPS&C is working with NIC and a few other providers to put these trainings together.

According to Boudreaux, the first module addresses the scope and dynamics of sexual assault in corrections.

"[It will] train the inmates just to give them an awareness of what is going on and what are the signs [of prison rape]," he said.

A second educational effort deals with investigating and reporting sexual assaults, according to Boudreaux.

"[We will] let them know how we are going to investigate [situations] and who they should report it to," he said.

Another module, Boudreaux said, will be geared towards correctional the staff who are charged with investigating reported incidents of prison rape.

"That's basically going after the investigators, making sure that they are adequately doing the investigative techniques that are necessary for the prosecutors to carry those [charges] out and make sure that the aggressors are dealt with properly," he said.

According to Boudreaux, enhanced training for investigators is important so that they can collect the information and evidence necessary to hand off to prosecutors who can, through the legal system, ensure that those inmates who have perpetrated against others receive proper punishment.

"Different levels of evidence are needed for prosecution versus disciplinary action inside the institution," Boudreaux said.  "We are going to make sure we have everything that is needed [to prosecute them on the outside]."

Aside from training for investigators, DPS&C also plans to give inmates advocacy and leadership training so they can support other inmates who have been victimized and help them to speak out, Boudreaux said.

The last training the DPS&C intends to implement is designed to provide staff with strategies for preventing and intervening in sexual assaults, he said.

While Boudreaux said that the Louisiana correctional system is fortunate in that it has had very few reported incidents of violence and sexual assault, he hopes the additional educational and training efforts the agency is about to implement will keep those numbers down.

He said that the new training efforts will begin for officers involved in classification, investigators and front line officers some time around the first of the year.  Boudreaux said that, eventually, the agency hopes to expand the prison rape training to other staff members and offer it on an annual basis.

Michigan and Lousiana are only two of 13 states to receive grants this year related to PREA and all of them plan to take a deeper look at the issue in their own jurisdictions. They are also happy that the research associated with the law will finally shed a bright light on the actual extent of the problem within corrections systems.

"We all have varying definitions of what rape is and what non-consensual sex is between prisoners. [But] an issue you can't miss is the fact that a prisoner can't consent in custody. The other part is not only redefining zero tolerance, but also prevention. If there were national standards related to prevention, education and punishment then that is good for the profession," Zang said.

Officials hope that the combination of surveys, evaluations, grants for training, and the creation of national standards all under the auspices of PREA, will enable a uniform response and prevention effort for the entire criminal justice community.

Resources:

Data Collections for the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003 - http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/pdf/dcprea03.pdf

Michigan DOC - (517) 373-6391

The Moss Group, (202) 548-4850

Louisiana DPS&C (225) 342-6956