PREA

Background

The Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) was passed by Congress and signed into law by President George W. Bush in 2003. The act is a national effort to prevent, detect and respond to sexual abuse and sexual harassment that occurs in confinement settings. During this session, the National Prison Rape Elimination Commission was established and charged with drafting national standards which applies to adult prisons and jails, juvenile facilities, lockups and community confinement facilities. In June 2009, the standards were published and submitted to the Department of Justice for final passage. The final ruling of the standards became effective in August 2012.

Purpose

The Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) requires that each agency shall collect accurate and uniform data of every allegation of sexual abuse or harassment for each facility under its direct control using a standardized instrument and a set of definitions and shall aggregate the incident based sexual abuse date at least annually as written in §115.387.

This overview is intended to:

Identify areas of concerns on an ongoing basis of the agency and facility
Identify corrective actions taken on an ongoing basis
Compare and contrast the current year’s corrective actions and preventions with previous years
Access the agency’s and facility’s progress of addressing sexual abuse and harassment

Newport News Juvenile Services’ Zero Tolerance Policy

The Newport News Department of Juvenile Services is committed to providing a safe and healthy environment for all staff, visitors and our juvenile residents. Juvenile Services has a zero tolerance for sexual misconduct of any kind and will impose discipline for such misconduct, up to and including dismissal for staff and serious sanctions for residents who victimize other residents. Incidents of sexual misconduct committed by visitors, professionals and/or contractors/vendor against our residents, shall be referred to law enforcement for investigation and prosecution. See policy and standards §115.322 – Policies to Ensure Referrals of Allegations for Investigation.

PREA Compliance Audits

Per PREA Standards § 115.393 – 405, the Newport News Juvenile Detention Center was audited in 2019. The NNJDC is PREA compliant. The audit report can be viewed by clicking the link below.

Newport News Department of Juvenile Services continues to have ongoing efforts to improve in all aspects of PREA and keep prevention, detection and response as a high priority to resident safety and security. Newport News Department of Juvenile Services will continue comprehensive PREA educational training to all staff, contractors, volunteers, vendors and residents on the facility’s zero tolerance to all forms of sexual abuse, assault and harassment. The Newport News Department of Juvenile Services will also continue to work and collaborate with stakeholders such as The Center for Sexual Assault Survivors, Riverside Hospital and the Newport News Police Department’s Special Victim’s Unit.

Report Abuse

Newport News Department of Juvenile Services will investigate all allegations of sexual abuse, sexual misconduct, harassment and retaliation by any resident, volunteer, contractor, professional or staff member upon receipt of this form. It is the intention of this Department to ensure that everyone conduct themselves in an appropriate manner at all times.

You can report known or any suspicion of abuse by the following:

The Facility’s Director/PREA Coordinator
Our Mailing Address
3rd Party reporting
The Center for Sexual Assault Survivors

» PREA 3rd Party Reporting Form

Brochures & Handbooks

Our Break the Silence brochure is given to every juvenile upon intake. It outlines what sexual abuse and harassment is and more importantly, how juveniles can report if they become a victim while in detention. Included within the brochure are several telephone numbers victims can call to report the abuse and also to receive counseling or services from a victim advocate.

Handbooks are on the housing units for residents to reference.