Characteristics of Sexual Victimization in Local Jails Reported by Inmates, 2023–24 – Statistical Tables

• NCJ Number: 310767
• Date Published: October 2026
• Author(s): Michael B. Field; Shelby Kottke-Weaver
• Length: 45 pages
• Agencies: BJS
• Publication Type: Publication

Abstract

This report presents findings from the fourth National Inmate Survey (NIS-4) in local jails as part of BJS’s National Prison Rape Statistics Program, which collects allegations of sexual victimization directly from victims. It describes characteristics of victims, perpetrators, and incidents related to inmate-reported sexual victimization in local jails. This report accompanies Sexual Victimization in Local Jails Reported by Inmates, 2023–24 (NCJ 309852, BJS, December 2025), which provides national and facility-level estimates of sexual victimization in local jails.

Highlights

• A larger percentage of female inmates (4.5%) reported inmate-on-inmate victimization than male inmates (1.8%), but the same percentage of both groups (2.3%) reported staff-on-inmate victimization.
• The percentage of inmates who were serving in the U.S. Armed Forces at the time of the survey (24.3%) reporting staff-on-inmate victimization was more than 10 times greater than the percentage among inmates who had never served (2.1%).
• Nearly one-third (30.4%) of inmates who reported prior sexual victimization in another facility also reported sexual victimization in their current facility.
• After the most recent incident of inmate-on-inmate victimization, 3 in 10 victims reported the perpetrator had some type of sexual contact with the victim again, hurt the victim or beat the victim up, or threatened to hurt the victim to keep it a secret.