The Prison Rape Elimination Commission, created by the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003, issued its final report this week.Prison sexual abuse is common. A 2007 survey conducted by the Bureau of Justice Statistics revealed that 4.5 percent of prisoners had experienced some form of sexual abuse within the previous 12 months. While 4.5% might seem insignificant, it is more than 65,000 victims given the large number of prisoners.
The full report is 276 pages long and I haven't read it, but while skimming it one of the Commission's findings stood out: "Juveniles in confinement are much more likely than incarcerated adults to be sexually abused, and they are particularly at risk when confined with adults."
We all suspected this, of course, but with the way Idaho Courts are waiving juveniles into adult courts even when all the experts agree it is not appropriate and then handling out lengthy prison sentences like Halloween candy, it might be worth citing this study to prosecutors and judges.
The full report can be found at: http://nprec.us/files/pdfs/NPREC_FinalReport.PDF
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