Gordon Graham
Category: Corrections

Gordon Graham here with Today’s Tip from Lexipol. Today’s Tip is for corrections.

Your jail is going to have a PREA audit.  Are you ready?

Today’s Tip is for my friends in corrections and today we are talking about what you can do to get ready for your next PREA audit. 

You hear that your jail is going to have a PREA audit. If you’re not the administrator, your first thought is probably, “OK, that doesn’t affect me much.” But it does.  Everyone has a responsibility to eliminate sexual abuse in jails and prisons.  

Sexual abuse of an inmate can be committed by a staff member or by another inmate. Following PREA standards is one way to help prevent these tragedies.  

Everyone who works in the jail, volunteers at the jail, or anyone who has access to inmates should be appropriately trained. This training should include learning how to prevent and detect sexual abuse and sexual harassment. 

When the auditors visit your facility, they will look at your policies. They will want to know if you have policies in place that address each of the PREA standards. But they won’t be content with just words on a page. They will try to make sure that you are following your policy. One of the ways they will do this is by interviewing random members of your staff.   

You might be selected for one of these interviews. But don’t worry. Just be prepared. You may be asked about various things. You will probably be asked about the PREA training you received.  You may be asked about how cross-gender searches are handled.  

You could be asked about the inmate screening process. Or how inmate housing decisions are made, based on answers to screening questions.  

You might be asked about the department’s response to inmate allegations of sexual harassment or abuse.  

Brush up on your PREA policies. Remember the PREA training you’ve received. And be ready to explain the practices that are in place at your facility. Then you will be ready.  

 And that’s Today’s Tip from Lexipol. Gordon Graham signing off.