Stop Prison Rape, Inc. was originally founded in 1980 by Russell D. Smith in St. Louis, MO. He used the resources from the International Copmmittee to Free Russell Smith, after his release from the United States Penitentiary at Leavenworth, KS that same year. He called it People Organized to Stop Rape of Imprisoned Persons (POSRIP). Due to his severe bouts with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and homelessness, Smith turned all of his paperwork over to the Labadie Collection of the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor (which already had many of his writings) and dropped out of the public eye. Tom Cahill in California picked up POSRIP and kept it going. Then Stephen Donaldson, aka Donny the Punk, took it over. Donaldson was a natural leader in this effort, and in time changed the name to what it is today. Since Donaldson's death, Cahill has maintained the Presidency of the organization now based in Los Angeles, which has considerable clout in lobbying for the rights of rape victims. Smith now resides in the tiny village of Salley, South Carolina, where he writes commentary whenever a matter of import catches his eye. He is currently working on publishing a book about what brought him to form what is now Stop Prison Rape, Inc. For more information on Smith, Cahill, and Donaldson, go to www.spr.org/en/publications and look under "Notable Survivor Voices".
On September 4, 2003, due to the lobbying efforts of Stop Prison Rape, Inc., the Prison Rape Reduction Act of 2003 was signed into law by President George W. Bush.
