Recommendations for Administrators of Prisons, Jails, and Community Confinement Facilities for Adapting the U.S. Department of Justice's "A National Protocol for Sexual Assault Medical Forensic Examinations, Adults/Adolescents"

“This guide is designed to assist administrators of prisons, jails, and community confinement facilities in drafting or revising protocols for an immediate response to reports of sexual assault. Sexual assault is a persistent problem in correctional environments with life-altering consequences for victims as well as for the integrity of correctional institutions and the fundamental principles of justice. The U.S. Department of Justice’s “National Standards to Prevent, Detect, and Respond to Prison Rape” [NIC accession no. 027282] set minimum requirements for correctional facilities to increase their overall capacity to address the problem of sexual assault. This guide is intended to help these facilities comply with the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) standards, which require correctional agencies to (1) follow a uniform evidence protocol when responding to sexual assault, which as appropriate is based on the U.S. Department of Justice’s A National Protocol for Sexual Assault Medical Forensic Examinations: Adults/Adolescents ... and (2) coordinate responses to sexual assault among involved professionals” (p. 5). Sections comprising this document are: recommendations at a glance; introduction to the guide; a primer on corrections-based sexual assault; overview of the sexual assault medical forensic examination for victims in correctional facilities; and recommendations for victim-centered care and for promoting a coordinated team approach. Appendixes include: issues and recommendations for lockups; issues and recommendations for juvenile detention facilities; possible roles of core responders; and “An Assessment Tool for Corrections Administrators Drafting/Revising Protocols for an Immediate Response to Sexual Assault.”