Does Standard 115.63(a) require that notification of an incident of sexual abuse that took place at a prior facility be made directly from the head of the facility receiving the allegation, or can some other designated person make the notification?
The notification must, at a minimum, be: (1) Made at the direction of the facility head, and (2) Appear to a third party to have originated with the facility head. For example, the facility head could instruct his or her administrative assistant to send the notification on the facility head’s letterhead and with the facility head’s signature, or to send the notification from the facility head’s email address. By contrast, the facility’s PREA Compliance Manager could not send the notification from his or her email address and merely copy the facility head.
The intent of the standard is to ensure that the person receiving the report of sexual abuse at the prior facility understands the seriousness and gravity of the allegation, and that the communication originated at the highest level of the reporting facility. For more information about Standard 115.63(a) and who should receive the report of sexual abuse at the prior facility, please click here.