The researchers had also found that prisoners with several overlapping characteristics are highly likely more than other prisoners to be targeted for abuse. The report concluded that in order to reduce prison rape, prison officials should take considerably more care in matching inmates together, and that, as a general rule, avoiding double-celling. (Schmalleger, 1997) .
The justice system and prison officials have been aware of the problem of prison rape and established some tools designed to track, restore, and curb the incidence of rape from continuing. The efforts, however, have been at best unplanned and sadly ineffective. Until the passage of PREA had come along, the victims of prison rape were largely left on their own to give the complainant, to follow it through administrative channels and, having drained those avenues, to initiate a lawsuit in court. Acknowledging that one has been a victim of rape or sexual assault poses a significant difficulty for any victim. The victim may have overwhelmed feelings of guilt. The reporting of the actual event may be very challenging and the victim may be uncertain to relive the event in the course of the investigation or to issue him or herself to the inspection involved in determining the truth of the report. He or she may worry that they may still face disbelief even after undergoing the trauma of the reporting process. The process becomes more complex because the victim is in the prison setting. The information does often become known to the prison population because the victim is having to admit the assault to the prison officials. This in turn increases the victim's liability and impairs his safety concerns. Once an inmate has raised the threat of sexual assault and requests physical protection, the institution often responds in ways that may feel more punishing to the victim than protecting them. One way that prison officials protect the inmate from further sexual assault is removing them from general population.
