Serving Youth at Risk

How does PREA impact King’s Home?
To whom does PREA apply?
How does PREA impact King’s Home employees?
Can King’s Home be sued for not complying with PREA?
What are the consequences for not complying with PREA?
Why should I be concerned with sexual misconduct at a facility?
What is King’s Home’s PREA Policy?
How do I report sexual abuse?
PREA Resources
Department Youth Services Contact:
What about juveniles who either manipulate the system using PREA or make false
allegations against staff?
What is the evidence of King’s Home’s commitment to maintain a safe, humane, and
appropriately secure environment for juveniles?
• PREA addresses the detection, elimination and prevention of sexual
assault in King’s Home’s DYS facility.
• PREA directs the collection and dissemination of information on the incidence of juvenile on juvenile sexual violence as well as staff sexual
misconduct with juveniles at King’s Home.
PREA applies to all public and private institutions that house juvenile and/or adult offender, males or females. PREA is applicable to the
smallest residential facility as well as facilities that hold hundreds of juveniles.
PREA addresses the safety of juveniles while in the King’s Home custody – including sexual assault, sexual harassment, supposedly
“consensual sex” with employees, and juvenile on juvenile sexual assault. PREA pertains to the safety of juveniles or adjudicated offenders
while in the custody of the criminal justice system including jail, detention, nonsecure residential care, and secure confinement. PREA also
directs agencies to maintain data regarding juvenile on juvenile sexual assaults, non-consensual sexual acts, and staff and juvenile sexual
misconduct.
No. PREA does not create any right to sue. However, states already are required by federal and state law to operate within Constitutional
requirements and assure the safety of juveniles in custody. All states have laws prohibiting sexual misconduct. More importantly, there is an
ethical responsibility to protect the safety of staff and those juveniles in custody. Failure to protect incarcerated juveniles can result in civil
liability for the agency, supervisors, and staff, both personally and professionally.
If King’s Home, as well as other Alabama detention facilities, fails to comply with the final PREA National Standards for juveniles when they
are disseminated, the State of Alabama will face a five percent reduction in federal funding for each year Alabama facilities fails to meet the
juvenile standards.
Sexual misconduct is not about sex, but about safety and security. Both are compromised whenever boundaries break down and a staff
member becomes personal or intimate with a juvenile.
Staff sexual misconduct and juvenile on juvenile sexual assault undermine the mission of King’s Home by creating unstable living and
working environments for the juveniles as well as their supervising staff members.
In compliance with Sections 115.311 and 115.322 of the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) Standards, King’s Home has established a zero
tolerance for incidents of juvenile sexual assault, rape or sexual harassment in the DYS facility. King’s Home has implemented policies and
procedures to ensure that the PREA Standards are upheld. All allegations of sexual assault/harassment that meet the definitions of PREA
are referred for investigations. These rules and procedures can be found by clicking the following link PREA Policies and Procedures.
If you suspect sexual abuse has happened at King’s Home, you have several options for reporting. You may call the King’s Home PREA
Coordinator at 205-678-6740; or you may call the ADYS Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-855-332-1594. If you prefer, you may call and report to
the Shelby County Police Department. You may also report using the Third Party Reporting Form. Please have any information or evidence
available for the investigator who will be assigned to handle the case. All reports are taken seriously and investigated as outlined in PREA
and King’s Home rules and procedures.
• 2020 PREA Audit Report
• Memorandum Update for 2022
• PREA 115.388
• www.prearesourcecenter.org
Marcus Briggs, marcus@kingshome.com, 205-678-6740
Staff are often concerned that addressing PREA-related issues in policy and procedure and educating juveniles as to their right to be safe
while in custody, may result in false accusations or false reports of staff misconduct. All allegations will be thoroughly and timely
investigated and false allegations may be prosecuted.
King’s Home is committed to providing safe, humane and appropriately secure environments for youth. All King’s Home staff receives
specialized training to ensure that this occurs.
Standards of employee conduct have long included prohibitions against staff becoming inappropriately personally involved with juveniles.
Employee disciplinary actions and referrals to law enforcement have been initiated where appropriate. When sufficient evidence exists,
King’s Home does not hesitate to remove that employee and to support criminal prosecution of that employee.