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GUEST: TJ Parcell, President of Stop Prisoner Rape, Cynthia Chandler, Co-Director of Justice Now

Earlier this week, a study released by the Bureau of Justice Statistics revealed that sexual assaults in prison are underreported. The bureau looked at more than 1,800 correctional facilities holding some 1.7 million inmates – which is 78 percent of the adult prison population. The most common type of complaint, 38% of allegations, was sexual misconduct by staff. Thirty five percent of inmates alleged inmate-on-inmate nonconsensual sexual acts. The majority of complaints, 74%, came from federal and state prison systems. The report is the second one required by the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003, which was an attempt to solve a problem believed to be widespread. The problem, say activists, is exacerbated by overcrowding in prison, lax oversight and very long terms that lead to prisoner disillusionment with the system. The National Prison Rape Elimination Commission convened a public hearing yesterday in Detroit where survivors of prison rape testified about their experiences.

For more information, visit www.justicenow.org, www.curbprisonspending.org, and www.spr.org.