Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA)

Statewide Juvenile PREA Coordinator

Scott Paasch
Direct: (702) 486-4526
Toll Free: (888) 421-9971
scott.paasch@dcfs.nv.gov
Juvenile.Justice@dcfs.nv.gov

    Prison Rape Elimination Act

    The Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) is a federal law enacted to prevent and eliminate sexual assault and rape in U.S. correctional facilities. The law applies to all federal, state, and local prisons, jails, lockups, juvenile facilities, private facilities, and community settings, establishing a zero tolerance policy for sexual assault behind bars. The PREA Standards, which were developed by the National Prison Rape Elimination Commission, provide rules to prevent, detect and respond to sexual abuse and sexual harassment within correctional systems. The Juvenile Facility Standards (28 C.F.R. Part 115) govern youth-on-youth sexual abuse and sexual harassment and staff-on-youth sexual abuse and sexual harassment incidents.

    Major provisions of PREA include the development of national standards; an adherence to zero-tolerance towards sexual abuse and sexual harassment within correctional systems; the collection and dissemination of information on the incidents of sexual abuse and sexual harassment within correctional systems; and the awarding of federal grant funds to help states and local governments implement the provisions of the Act.

    The Division of Child and Family Services (DCFS) has a zero tolerance policy towards all forms of sexual abuse and sexual harassment of youth in custody. DCFS accomplishes this by: 

    • Having a statewide PREA Coordinator and facility based PREA Compliance Managers.
    • Having policies and procedures in place to prevent, detect and respond to sexual abuse and sexual harassment.
    • Completing youth risk assessments upon admission.  
    • Continually educating staff and youth on PREA to promote a culture that discourages sexual abuse and sexual harassment.  
    • Increasing awareness of safe reporting mechanisms available to youth, staff and third parties while protecting reporters from retaliation.
    • Aggressively responding to, investigating, and supporting the prosecution of sexual misconduct in all facilities, in partnership with law enforcement and the courts.
    • Establishing data collection systems to accurately track sexual abuse and sexual harassment allegations and analyze incidents in order to continually improve the safety of youth.
    • Participating in PREA audits to ensure each facility and the agency maintain compliance.

      Reporting PREA

      To report sexual abuse or sexual harassment of a youth in a facility:

      • Report to any facility staff member, including the PREA Compliance Manager
      • Call the DCFS PREA Coordinator directly at 1-888-421-9971
      • Report it electronically here: Report a PREA Incident
      • Report it to our external reporting source Nevada 211 by:
        •  Calling 211 (select option 1 for Health and Human Services), or
        •  Texting your zip code to 898211, or
        •  Going to https://www.nevada211.org/ to chat with a 211 representative, or
        •  Calling 1-866-535-5654 from outside Nevada

        PREA Reports and Resources

        Past audits are available upon request.