Obama Executive Order Officially Implements Prison Rape Elimination Act

[The Straight Story]

Obama Executive Order Officially Implements Prison Rape Elimination Act

Earlier this year, the Department of Justice released its final guidelines for implementation of the Prison Rape Elimination Act, which took many years to develop. The new rules contain specific protections for those who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex (LGBTI), or who are otherwise gender non-conforming, including professional training for all correctional staff to minimize mistreatment. In addition, the new guidelines call for a screening process to make sure that individuals who identify as trans or gender non-conforming are appropriately placed in facilities where they will not be vulnerable to sexual abuse.

Today, President Obama issued an executive order officially implementing these guidelines across the country:

My Administration, with leadership from the Department of Justice, has worked diligently to implement the principles set out in PREA. Today, the Attorney General finalized a rule adopting national standards to prevent, detect, and respond to prison rape. This rule expresses my Administration’s conclusion that PREA applies to all Federal confinement facilities, including those operated by executive departments and agencies (agencies) other than the Department of Justice, whether administered by the Federal Government or by a private organization on behalf of the Federal Government.

It may be some time before the effects are felt, but it’s an important step forward. In particular, trans women are too often place in men’s prisons, making them thirteen times more likely to be sexually assaulted while incarcerated. This is a fate that no prisoner deserves, and protecting LGBTI inmates from discriminatory mistreatment is a step that makes the country a better place for all its citizens.

http://thinkprogress.org/lgbt/2012/12/07/1300511/obama-executive-order-officially-implements-prison-rape-elimination-act/

[jody]

1. Govt is obligated to protect those in custody but not law-abiding citizens. The latter must provide

their own self-defense for which they can exercise their natural, inherent, unalienable/inalienable right.