Most States Report Significant Efforts to Stop Prisoner Rape

Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., June 11, 2015 — For the second consecutive year, the vast majority of state governors have affirmatively reported on their commitment to implementing the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) standards. An updated list of states’ submissions — posted online Tuesday by the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), an arm of the Department of Justice — shows that 45 state governors have either certified full compliance with the standards or issued an assurance that implementation is underway.

“The continuing effort among states to implement the PREA standards is an encouraging sign. If these states’ implementation is full and meaningful, it will result in a dramatic reduction in sexual abuse behind bars,” said Lovisa Stannow, Executive Director of Just Detention International. “Sexual violence in detention is preventable. It’s the duty of government officials to keep all inmates safe. By committing to PREA, governors are showing that they take this responsibility seriously.”

The number of states certifying full compliance with the PREA standards increased from two in 2014 to ten in 2015. This expansion shows that, given time, states with prison systems of various sizes and correctional approaches can implement these groundbreaking standards, which were released by the Department of Justice in 2012. A total of 35 states submitted assurances, including Florida and Indiana, which both opted out of PREA last year.

Also included in that number was Texas. The Department of Justice determined that a letter from Texas Governor Greg Abbott counts as an assurance, despite Abbott’s promise “to work toward full compliance with DOJ’s PREA standards wherever feasible.” JDI applauds the Department of Justice’s desire to work with states to end sexual abuse, but believes accepting the governor’s letter as an assurance is a mistake.

“On the one hand, Governor Abbott deserves praise for being willing to adopt PREA and for distancing himself from former Governor Rick Perry, whose cynical opposition to the standards last year put lives in danger,” said Stannow. “But it’s troubling that the Department of Justice is allowing Governor Abbott the option to decline provisions that he deems infeasible. No other Governor has been granted this choice, nor should they be. PREA is not an à la carte menu. The law’s intent is clear — every provision must be met.”

Five states opted out of the PREA standards this year. Arizona, Arkansas, and Idaho explicitly rejected the standards, while Alaska and Utah did so implicitly by not submitting a certification or assurance. Arkansas is the only state that explicitly backpedaled, rejecting the PREA standards only one year after offering an assurance. Governor Asa Hutchinson’s decision is particularly troubling given that, earlier today, the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division announced an investigation into reports of widespread sexual abuse in McPherson Women’s Prison in Newport, Arkansas.

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Just Detention International is a health and human rights organization that seeks to end sexual abuse in all forms of detention.