Introduction
The Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) is federal law, Public Law 108-79, signed into law in September 2003 by the President of the United States and now designated as 42 USC § 15601.
PREA establishes a zero-tolerance standard against sexual assaults and rapes of incarcerated persons of any age. This makes the prevention of sexual assault in OJJ facilities a top priority.
PREA sets a standard that protects the Eighth Amendment right (Constitutional right prohibiting cruel or unusual punishment) of Federal, State, and local youth offenders.
It also increases nation-wide data on sexual misconduct and sexual assaults on confined persons. It increases accountability for administrators who fail to prevent, reduce, and punish sexual misconduct and sexual assaults.