The Cold Hard Facts about Incarceration

THE COLD HARD FACTS ABOUT INCARCERATION The levels of security in a prison system are categorized hold violent prisoners and those judged most likely differently around the world, but tend to follow a to escape, to the least, which are most often used distinct pattern. Most developed countries divide prisons to house non-violent offenders or those for whom more into separate security classes depending on the inmate stringent security is deemed unnecessary. Below are population and the security needed to keep them under prison statistics to show how out of control the prison control. Accordingly, most developed countries have population has become, explaining the current state of the U.S. criminal justice system. classes ranging from the most secure, which typically THE UNITED STATES CURRENTLY HAS America represents LESS THAN 5% of the world's THE LARGEST INMATE POPULATION IN THE WORLD... population, but OVER 25% of the world's incarcerated population. The United States also has the ONE in a 100 largest imprisoned population, with adults are in 739 PEOPLE PER 100,000 prison and jails. serving time, awaiting trial or otherwise detained. ACCORDING TO THE U.S. BUREAU OF JUSTICE STATISTICS IN 2008, 7.3 MILLION+ PEOPLE WERE ON PROBATION, IN JAIL OR PRISON, OR ON PAROLE AT YEAR-END... 2. 3.2% of ALL U.S. ADULT RESIDENTS to 30 ADULTS 2,304,115 were INCARCERATED IN U.S. prisons and jails in 2008. AS A CONSEQUENCE OF "3 STRIKES LAWS," THE INCREASE IN 3. THE DURATION OF INCARCERATION IN THE LAST DECADE WAS MOST PRONOUNCED IN THE CASE OF LIFE PRISON SENTENCES... Consequence Consequence Consequence It increased by 83% between GO TO PRISON Breetly te Prisen GO TO PRISON Ge Directly to Prisen GO TO PRISON Go Directly to Prisen For Life STRIKE TWO 1992 and 2003. STRIKE ONE STRIKE THREE "THREE STRIKES AND YOU'RE OUT!" AFRICAN AMERICANS ACCOUNT FOR JUST 12% OF THE U.S. POPULATION, Other 26% Caucasians 30% African Americans 44% BUT MAKE UP 44% OF THE U.S. PRISON POPULATIO... 20 5x In states, the percent of blacks incarcerated was at least GREATER than their share of resident population. APPROXIMATELY ONE IN EVERY 18 MEN IN THE U.S. IS BEHIND BARS OR BEING MONITORED... RATIO OF IMPRISONED TO CIVILIAN POPULATION (per 100,000) I= 10 people LOWEST RATIO Maine: 148 IIIIII.... Minnesota: 171 3 Rhode Island: 175 ...-- ... HIGHEST RATIO 1 Louisiana: 816 2 Texas: 694 Mississippi: 669 ...---..II. OVER 90% OF 6. PRISONERS ARE MALE... In the United States, out of all males between the ages 25-29 that were sentenced and in prison... 10.4% Approximately are 27% BLACK 2.4% MALES of federal prison inmates are HISPANIC are NON-CITIZENS, convicted 1.3% MALES of crimes while in the are country legally or illegally. WHITE MALES THE PERCENTAGE OF 7. PRISONERS IN FEDERAL The Southern Legislative Conference found that in 16 SOUTHERN STATES, AND STATE PRISONS AGED 55 AND OLDER INCREASED 33% FROM the elderly prisoner population increased on average by 145% between 1997 and 2007. 2000-2005 WHILE THE The growth in the elderly population brought along HIGHER HEALTH CARE COSTS, most notably seen in the 10% PRISON POPULATION GREW ONLY 8%... average increase in state prison budgets from 2005 to 2006. ONE out of SIX prisoners in California is serving a life sentence. By 2020, 16% of those serving life sentences will be elderly. LIFE SENTENCE INMATES ARE UNABLE TO APPLY FOR MEDICARE & MEDICAID... 8. Housing ONE prisoner costs a state between $18,000 and $31,000 annually. AVERAGE PRISONER ELDERLY PRISONER $33 $100 per day per day State governments pay ALL of their Most DOCS report spending more than 10% of the annual budget on inmates' housing costs which significantly increase as prisoners age. elderly care. IN 2006, $68,747,203,000 WAS SPENT ON CORRECTIONS... 6- The average annual operating cost Among facilities operated by the per state inmate in 2001: Federal Bureau of Prisons: $22,650 or $62.05 PER DAY $22,632 or $62.01 PER DAY HOUSING 500,000 PEOPLE 10 IN JAIL AWAITING TRIAL WHO CANNOT AFFORD BAIL COSTS 62% of local $9 BILLIONA YEAR... jail inmates are trial. TO EASE JAIL OVERCROWDING, BUILDING NEW JAILS 11 IS CONSIDERED EVERY YEAR... Lubbock County, In Broward County, TEXAS built a FLORIDA, supervised $110 MILLION pretrial release costs $7/day per person while jail costs $115/day. 25c MEGAJAIL The jail system costs to ease jail of every county tax overcrowding. dollar in Broward County, and is the single largest expense to the county taxpayer. information provided by: Criminology.net http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prison#United_States http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prisont#Population_statistics http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incarceration_in_the_United States http://drugwarfacts.org/cms/?q=node/l62 http://usgovinfo.about.com/cs/censusstatistic/a/aaprisonpop.htm http://www.heartsandminds.org/prisons/facts.htm http://www.trutv.com/shows/inside_american_jail/facts.html http://www.drugwarfacts.org/cms/node/64 Walmsley, Roy 10ctober 2006). "World Prison Population List (Seventh Edition)" (PDF). Harrison, Paige M., Allen J. Beck (June 20061. "Prison and Jail Inmates at Midyear 2005." Bureau of Justice Statistics. "One in100: Behind Bars in America 2008" IPDFI, Pew Charitable Trusts. 2008-02-28. "World Prison Population List (Seventh Editionl" (PDF). "Statistics - August 2007" lin Polishl. Prison Service, Poland (Stużba Więzienna). August 2007. DESIGN & ILLUSTRATION byi IVY SA