Advocates for prison inmates on Tuesday accused Attorney General Eric Holder of “dragging his feet” on adopting national standards for preventing rape in prisons.
Justice Department statistics show that an estimated 4.5 percent, or 60,500 inmates, report being victims of sexual assault in federal prisons, said Pat Nolan, vice president of outreach program Prison Fellowship. It happens to almost 1 in 8 juveniles in custody.
But Nolan said proposed national standards – include increasing lighting around facilities, screening staffers for sexual misconduct and independent supervision of prisons – can reduce those numbers in federal and state prisons. In California and Oregon, he said, changes in prison culture were successfully taking hold within a year of adopting standards that address mismanagement and poor leadership feeding the problem.
The National Prison Rape Elimination Commission submitted its report – including those recommendations – to Holder in June. But the Justice Department declined to comment on a definite timeline or details of national standards. Spokeswoman Hannah August said in an e-mail that a proposal should be ready in the fall.