Effective Management of Female Jail Detainees With Histories of Physical and Sexual Abuse

• NCJ Number: 175280
• Journal: American Jails Volume: 12 Issue: 2 Dated: May/June 1998 Pages: 50-54
• Author(s): B M Veysey; K De Cou; L Prescott
• Date Published: 1998
• Length: 5 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This paper discusses the unique issues of and proposes specific adaptations to routine procedures for supervising female jail inmates, a large percentage of whom were victims of sexual and physical abuse in their early years.

Abstract

Incarcerated women who have histories of abuse are particularly sensitive to coercive situations. The jail environment and routine procedures may be misperceived by abused women as dangerous and threatening. Responses to perceived threat may be withdrawal, fighting back, extreme outbursts, worsening of psychiatric symptoms or physical health problems, self-injury or suicide attempts, and increased substance use. Many of the standard and routine procedures used in jails to process individuals, provide security, and meet medical standards of care may unintentionally retraumatize women with abuse histories. Routine procedures that have this potential are requiring the removal of clothing, intimate touching of an inmate's body in strip searches and medical exams, threat or use of physical force, the observation of the use of force, isolation, and locked rooms or spaces. This paper suggests adaptations to procedures to reduce the retraumatizing of women with abuse histories. A modification of booking procedures focuses on information disclosure, screening and assessment, crisis and de-escalation intervention screening, and the use of female staff. Procedures pertinent to general conditions of confinement focus on classification and housing, the use of administrative segregation, privacy, and safety. Procedures involved in treatment services and crisis response address specialized staff, behavioral management techniques, group treatment, and crisis response. Also discussed are procedures for release planning and referral to community services; these pertain to community referrals, linkage to probation officers, and the development of safety plans. Training for corrections officers and other staff is considered as well.