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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.
Data Collections & Surveys | |
Publications & Products | |
PREA Data Collection Activities, 2012
The Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003 (PREA; P.L. 108-79) requires the Attorney General to submit to Congress, not later than June 30 of each year, a report on the activities of the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) for the preceding calendar year. |
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PDF (388K) | ASCII file (23K)
Part of the PREA Data Collection Activities Series
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Sexual Victimization Reported by Former State Prisoners, 2008
Presents data on sexual victimization experienced by former state prisoners during their prior term of incarceration, including any time served in a local jail, state prison, or postrelease community-correctional facility. |
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Press Release | PDF (1.4M) | ASCII file (118K) | CSV (Zip format 123K)
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PREA Data Collection Activities, 2011
The Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003 (PREA; P.L. 108-79) requires the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) to carry out, for each calendar year, a comprehensive statistical review of the incidence and effects of prison rape in randomly selected federal, state, and county correctional facilities. |
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PDF (470KB) | ASCII file (14KB)
Part of the PREA Data Collection Activities Series
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Sexual Victimization Reported by Adult Correctional Authorities, 2007-2008
Examines 2007 and 2008 data from the Survey of Sexual Violence (SSV). Conducted since 2004, the SSV is an annual collection of official records on incidents of inmate-on-inmate and staff-on-inmate sexual victimization. |
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Press Release | PDF (692K) | ASCII file (94K) | Spreadsheets (Zip format)
Part of the Sexual Violence Reported by Correctional Authorities Series
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Sexual Victimization in Prisons and Jails Reported by Inmates, 2008-09
Presents data from the National Inmate Survey (NIS), 2008-09, conducted in 167 state and federal prisons, 286 local jails, and 10 special correctional facilities (operated by U.S. Armed Forces, Indian tribes, or the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)) between October 2008 and December 2009, with a sample of 81,566 inmates ages 18 or older. |
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Press Release | PDF (1.1M) | ASCII file (92K) | Spreadsheet (Zip format 98K)
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PREA Data Collection Activities, 2010
The Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003 (PREA) (P.L. 108-79) 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. |
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PDF (131K) | ASCII file (13K)
Part of the PREA Data Collection Activities Series
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Sexual Victimization in Juvenile Facilities Reported by Youth, 2008-09
Presents data from the 2008-09 National Survey of Youth in Custody (NSYC), conducted in 195 juvenile confinement facilities between June 2008 and April 2009, with a sample of over 9,000 adjudicated youth. |
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Press Release | Acrobat file (PDF 1.7M) | ASCII file (65K) | Zip format (Spreadsheet 40K)
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PREA Data Collection Activities, 2009
The Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003 (PREA) (P.L. 108-79) 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. BJS has developed a multiple-measure, multiple-mode data collection strategy to fully implement requirements under PREA. |
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PDF (388K) | ASCII file (9K)
Part of the PREA Data Collection Activities Series
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Sexual Violence Reported by Juvenile Correctional Authorities, 2005-06
Presents data from the 2005 and 2006 Survey on Sexual Violence, an administrative records collection of incidents required under the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003 (Public Law 108-79) of youth-on-youth and staff-on-youth sexual violence reported to juvenile correctional authorities. |
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Press Release | PDF (221K) | ASCII file (31K) | Spreadsheet (Zip format 45K) | To order paper version
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Sexual Victimization in Local Jails Reported by Inmates, 2007
Presents data from the 2007 National Inmate Survey (NIS), conducted in 282 local jails between April and December, with a sample of 40,419 inmates. |
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Press Release | PDF (265K) | ASCII file (37K) | Spreadsheet (Zip format 47K) | To order paper version
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Inmate population in jail jurisdictions reporting on confined persons being held for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, midyear 2002-2008
Table 9 from Jail Inmates at Midyear 2008 - Statistical Tables |
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Download CSV file (Data Table 2 KB)
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Most serious offense of jail inmates, 2002 and 1996
Table 3 of Profile of Jail Inmates, 2002 |
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Download CSV file (Spreadsheet 4 KB)
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Length of sentence and time expected to be served of inmates sentenced to jail, by offense, 2002
Table 6 of Profile of Jail Inmates, 2002 |
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Download CSV file (Spreadsheet 2 KB)
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Prior alcohol use of jail inmates, 2002 and 1996
Table 11 of Profile of Jail Inmates, 2002 |
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Download CSV file (Spreadsheet 2 KB)
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Substance abuse treatment of jail inmates who used alcohol or drugs, 2002 and 1996
Table 14 of Profile of Jail Inmates, 2002 |
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Download CSV file (Spreadsheet 2 KB)
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Criminal history of jail inmates, by gender, race, and Hispanic origin, 2002
Table 10 of Profile of Jail Inmates, 2002 |
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Download CSV file (Spreadsheet 2 KB)
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Prior drug use of jail inmates, by type of drug, 2002 and 1996
Table 12 of Profile of Jail Inmates, 2002 |
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Download CSV file (Spreadsheet 2 KB)
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Most serious offense of jail inmates, by gender, race, and Hispanic origin, in 2002
Table 4 of Profile of Jail Inmates, 2002 |
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Download CSV file (Spreadsheet 3 KB)
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Convicted jail inmates using drugs or alcohol at the time of the offense, by characteristics of inmates, 2002 and 1996
Table 13 of Profile of Jail Inmates, 2002 |
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Download CSV file (Spreadsheet 2 KB)
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Criminal history of jail inmates, by conviction status, 2002 and 1996
Table 9 of Profile of Jail Inmates, 2002 |
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Download CSV file (Spreadsheet 2 KB)
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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. |
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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. |
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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. |
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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. |
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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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