Wow, what a sick point of view. You support torture withyour taxes, and a violation of human rights, the bill ofrights and the nature of justice.

I suppose you endorse other forms of torture as well.... what a sick bastard who's never read the 8th amendment.

On day, that released prisoner will be on the street and look at you fondly remembering the tax-paid impulse torape that you endorse he have... and maybe he'll rape youand you'll feel so happy about your wise veiw on justice.

Upon further consideration (I deleted a previous comment), I think that an array of cameras and microphones is just not an effective solution.

I agree Sweetheart, my first comment was too harsh, and I appologize. Though I do think it is more important to make life safer for those in the free society, before we make the prisons safer.

I'm not sure a video camera is the correct solution...What if the rapist obstructs the view, turns the light off, or exploits a blind angle?... What if the cameras get spray painted?

While this solution may deter prisoners who are in for short periods, I can't see how this will have an effect on people in for long periods of time or for life. I just don't think they care, especially when they're on drugs. What you will most certainly get is the video footage smuggled out and broadcast on the Internet on prisonrape.com, for all our kids to see. On second thought, broadcasting prison rape in real time on TV may deter future offenders.

It would be a decent start. It's a systematic problem, though, that can't be solved simply with a monitoring.

I'd make it optional for the prisoners. If they don't want video cameras of them in their cells and showers, they shouldn't have to...even felons have a right to privacy.

On the other hand, if they do want the protection that affords...

If you put it on a password protected webcam, there's even the benefit that their children can see them. That may not be important to some people, but just being able to see daddy online prevents his exclusion from being a member of his family. (Keep in mind that not all criminals are bad parents.)

Inmates murder other inmates, knowing full well that they will be found guilty and sentenced to 25 to life, to run concurrently with whatever sentence they are already serving. Inmates use drugs, make tattoo guns, and commit various other felonies almost indiscriminately. I'm afraid there may be no prevention, short of physically stopping it. I don't think cameras could be effective.

Mike: If this could work it would require cameras on every speck of space in the place, every cell, every room, everywhere. Or else they would just rape the victim where there is no camera.

I think that everything should be done to end prison rape. It is easy for most people to say, "Oh, they are a criminal, they have violated the laws of our society they have no rights and should be allowed to rape each other at will".

I say that because in our society, whenever anything needs to be done to change prison or help people in prison, that is the usual stand most folks take.

The real deal is that all kinds of people go to prison. They (the department of justice) seperates prisoners by violent offender and non-violent offender, usually. This seperation does not occur when a non-violent offender gets more then, say 5 years. They can then spend a few years in a "low" or "medium", which has violent offenders.

So, that CFO that helped the CEO defraud those stock holders, and gets 10 years in prision, may well sleep next to a rapist. Guess what is going to happen???

swamilad actually hit the nail on the head in a back handed way. Saying, "I'm afraid there may be no prevention, short of physically stopping it." The only real way to stop it is to physically stop it. That means guards that are there to not only guard inmates from the outside but also from each other. That is not how the prisons are run today.

Guards and administrators are, for the most part care nothing of the prisoners well being. When they leave for the day, the only measurement of their performance is if the count is right. Basically, if no one escapes they have done their job. Violations of human rights only stop when it is recognized that prisoners are human beings first.

A person pays a great deal just lossing their freedom, and I thought that was the penalty, not rape, and humiliation by other inmates as well as guards.

Just my 2 cents from a former inmate...

Cameras would be a good start. Then there needs to be some added penalty to it.How about spending the rest of the sentence in solitary confinement if you commit a crime while in prison? The new sentence would then work to rehabilitate the prisoner prior to discharge.

Or just normalize prisoner testosteron levels to ~50% of normal by forced medication?

There are drugs that suppress sexual urges, the use of which is sometimes called "chemical castration." Put it in prison food.

That might reduce, but not eliminate prison rape; rape is a crime of violence, not sex.

Are there chemicals that reduce violent behavior? I think so. Put them in prison food, also.

Who shall be watching all of these cameras all the time?

The only idea that I have seen that might work is forcing prison rapists (and others who commit crimes in prison) to spend the remainder of their time in solitary confinement.

That said, the whole prison system is so broken that this is just an out-of-place deck chair on the Titanic. Non-violent criminals shouldn't even be in prisons. They should be working to repay society for their crimes. Violent criminals should spend time in a serious rehab before prison. If they can rehab and change their violent ways then they can work outside to pay for their crimes, too. But if they cannot be rehabilitated then they can either sit in solitary confinement or die.

Just how common is rape in prison anyway - compaired to other serious offences that inmates inflict on each other? Here in the UK the prisons are full - seriously - they are full - so one part of me says let's advertise the terrible conditions in our jails to act as a huge disincentive to people.

I guess a lot of rapes are simply not reported for fear of reprisals - so is there a mechanism for secretly reporting such offences and is anyone doing any work with the minds of these inmates to make them less likely to offend? I can't help thinking that the cameras are just too imptactical, so prevention must be the way ahead

jails are little communities within themselves - you might find the guards are as bigger crooks as the crims.

I'd like to respond to these durnky's questions: "What if the rapist obstructs the view, turns the light off, or exploits a blind angle?... What if the cameras get spray painted?"

Let's suppose that 6% or so of prisoners complain that they are being raped in prison. Now, the problem is to determine whether they are really being raped or not. So, let's say cameras are installed to monitor the cells of prisoners who complain (let's call them "possible victims"). Possible victims ought to make every effort to stay within the field of view of the webcams. If footage of possible victims being dragged out of the field of view is recorded, this should at least raise a red flag. Spray painting of cameras would likewise raise a red flag, though it seems to me that this could be addressed by limiting prisoner access to spray paint. Do prisoners really have spray paint? As for turning off the light - once a possible victim files a complaint, then his cell should be lighted at all times - the prison officials ought to be able to control the lighting. Someone obstructing the view would also raise a red flag. Audio recordings should also help - if someone obstructs the view and then audio recordings pick up someone screaming, "no! help! help! arrrgh!" - well, I'd say there's a situation that merits extra attention.

trying2bgood asked, "Who shall be watching all of these cameras all the time?" Let the videos appear on a website - probably someone will watch. Also, you could have something triggered whenever the audio recording reaches a certain decibel level (maybe someone is screaming for help) and viewers could have the option of watching only those videos recorded when the decibel level exceeds a certain threshold.

Shafi wrote "While this solution may deter prisoners who are in for short periods, I can't see how this will have an effect on people in for long periods of time or for life." Is the idea that people in for long periods of time or for life have nothing to lose? There could be a punishment of one year of solitary confinement per rape, or something like that. Video and audio recordings would help to establish whether or not a rape actually occurred - of course, we wouldn't want to punish prisoners who have been falsely accused of raping other prisoners.