Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act

The Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act (CRIPA) of 1980 is a United States federal law intended to protect the rights of people in state or local correctional facilities, nursing homes, mental health facilities and institutions for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

CRIPA is enforced by the Special Litigation Section in the United States Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, which investigates and prosecutes complaints in terms of this legislation. The Special Litigation Section is allowed to investigate state or locally operated institutions in order to ascertain if there is a pattern or a practice of violations of a residents' federal rights. The section is not allowed to investigate private facilities. They are also not allowed to represent individuals or address specific individual cases, but they are able to file lawsuits against facilities as a whole.

The Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act (CRIPA) was enacted into law in 1980, and enabled the Department of Justice to protect the rights of those individuals who were in the care of state institutions. Such institutions include state and locally operated jails and prisons, juvenile correctional facilities, public nursing homes, mental health facilities and institutions for individuals with intellectual disabilities. The law allows for the attorney general to intervene on behalf of institutionalized people whose rights may have been repressed or violated. This law was enacted to give statutory authority to the Department of Justice to protect the civil rights cases of institutionalized people.

CRIPA does not create any new rights. Instead, it allows the attorney general to enforce already established rights of institutionalized persons.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) discovers possible civil rights violations in a number of ways. These reports can range from a number of informal means such as news reports, family members, the prisoners or inhabitants themselves, and from former and current employees of the institution.

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