Prisoners in 2017

"Presents final counts of prisoners under the jurisdiction of state and federal correctional authorities at year-end 2017 and includes findings on admissions, releases, and imprisonment rates. Selected findings on prisoner demographic and offense characteristics, non-U.S. citizen inmates, prisoners age 17 or younger, prison capacity, and prisoners held in private prisons, local jails, the U.S. military, and U.S. territories are also included. Findings are based on data from BJS's National Prisoner Statistics program, which collects data from state departments of corrections and the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

Highlights:

• The imprisonment rate for sentenced prisoners under state or federal jurisdiction decreased 2.1% from 2016 to 2017 (from 450 to 440 sentenced prisoners per 100,000 U.S. residents) and 13% from 2007 to 2017 (from 506 to 440 per 100,000).
• The number of prisoners under state or federal jurisdiction decreased by 18,700 (down 1.2%), from 1,508,100 at year-end 2016 to 1,489,400 at year-end 2017.
• The federal prison population decreased by 6,100 prisoners from year-end 2016 to year-end 2017 (down 3%), accounting for one-third of the overall change in the U.S. prison population.
• More than half (55%) of state prisoners were serving sentences for violent offenses at year-end 2016, the most recent year for which data are available..."
  Prisoners

2018 Update On Prisoner Recidivism: A 9-Year Follow-Up Period (2005-2014)

"Examines the recidivism patterns of former prisoners during a 9-year follow-up period. The report provides data on the number and types of crimes prisoners commit after release, by offender characteristics, commitment offense, whether the arrest was within or outside the state of release, and whether released prisoners had no subsequent arrests during the follow-up period. It also shows how recidivism and desistance patterns change when using longer or shorter follow-up periods, including cumulative and annual arrest percentages, year of first arrest following release from prison, and the total number of arrests of released prisoners. Findings are based on data from BJS's Recidivism Study of State Prisoners Released in 2005 data collection, which tracked a sample of former prisoners from 30 states for 9 years following release in 2005. Source data are from prisoner records reported by state departments of corrections to BJS's National Corrections Reporting Program and national criminal history records from the FBI's Interstate Identification Index and state criminal history repositories via the International Justice and Public Safety Network.

Highlights:

• The 401,288 state prisoners released in 2005 had 1,994,000 arrests during the 9-year period, an average of 5 arrests per released prisoner. Sixty percent of these arrests occurred during years 4 through 9.
• An estimated 68% of released prisoners were arrested within 3 years, 79% within 6 years, and 83% within 9 years.
• Eighty-two percent of prisoners arrested during the 9-year period were arrested within the first 3 years.
• Almost half (47%) of prisoners who did not have an arrest within 3 years of release were arrested during years 4 through 9.
• Forty-four percent of released prisoners were arrested during the first year following release, while 24% were arrested during year-9..."
  Prisoner recidivism

Prisoners in 2016

"Presents final counts of prisoners under the jurisdiction of state and federal correctional authorities at year-end 2016, including admissions, releases, noncitizen inmates, and inmates age 17 or younger. The report describes prisoner populations by jurisdiction, most serious offense, and demographic characteristics. Selected findings on prison capacity and prisoners held in private prisons, local jails, the U.S. military, and U.S. territories are also included. Findings are based on data from BJS's National Prisoner Statistics program, which collects data from state departments of correction and the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

Highlights:

• The number of prisoners under state and federal jurisdiction at year-end 2016 (1,505,400) decreased by 21,200 (down more than 1%) from year-end 2015.
• The federal prison population decreased by 7,300 prisoners from 2015 to 2016 (down almost 4%), accounting for 34% of the total change in the U.S. prison population.
• State and federal prisons had jurisdiction over 1,458,200 persons sentenced to more than 1 year at year-end 2016.
• The number of females sentenced to more than 1 year in state or federal prison increased by 500 from 2015 to 2016.
• The imprisonment rate in the United States decreased 2%, from 459 prisoners per 100,000 U.S. residents of all ages in 2015 to 450 per 100,000 in 2016..."
  Prisoner statistics

Prisoners 2016

"The United States had an estimated 1,505,400 prisoners under the jurisdiction of state and federal correctional authorities as of December 31, 2016 (year-end). This was a decline of 21,200 prisoners (down 1%) from year-end 2015. State prisons held 13,900 fewer prisoners in 2016 than in 2015, while the federal prison population decreased by 7,300 (down almost 4%). For sentenced prisoners, the imprisonment rates at year-end 2016 were the lowest since 1997, with 450 prisoners per 100,000 U.S. residents of all ages and 582 per 100,000 U.S. residents age 18 or older (figure 1). Sentenced prisoners exclude those who have not received a term of imprisonment by the court and those with a sentence of 1 year or less..."
Prisoners

Disabilities Among Prison and Jail Inmates, 2011–12

"In 2011–12, about 3 in 10 state and federal prisoners and 4 in 10 local jail inmates reported having at least one disability. Among prison and jail inmates, females were more likely to report a disability than males (figure 1). About 40% of females and 31% of males in prison and 49% of females and 39% of males in jail reported a disability. In this report, disability types include hearing, vision, cognitive, ambulatory, self-care, and independent living, which refers to the ability to navigate daily life schedules, activities, and events without assistance..."
Disabilities among prisoners

Drug Offenders in Federal Prison: Estimates of Characteristics Based on Linked Data

"Publicly available BOP datasets do not include information about prisoners’ criminal history, offense details, and sentencing decisions, making it difficult to assess the criminal background of the offenders and the nature of their offenses. This report uses a new dataset that links the BOP population at fiscal yearend 2012 (i.e., stock population), with sentencing information from the U.S. Sentencing Commission (USSC) to describe the federal prison population in greater detail. The dataset includes the 94,678 sentenced offenders in federal prison whose most serious offense was drug-related, who were serving time on a new U.S. district court commitment, and who had valid links to USSC data. Of these, almost all were drug trafficking offenders, while the remainder were sentenced for other drug offenses, primarily possession..."
Drug offenders

Prisoners in 2011

Find the latest figures on the prison population in the United States (2000-2011)
Prisoners in 2011

Prisoners in 2010

"The Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) reported today that the number of offenders under adult correctional supervision in the U.S. declined 1.3 percent in 2010, the second consecutive year of decline since BJS began reporting on this population in 1980. At yearend 2010, about 7.1 million people, or 1 in 33 adults, were under the supervision of adult correctional authorities in the U.S.

In addition, the total U.S. prison population fell to 1.6 million at yearend 2010, a decline of 0.6 percent during the year, the first decline in the total prison population in nearly four decades. This decline was due to a decrease of 10,881 in the number of state prisoners, which fell to just under 1.4 million persons and was the largest yearly decrease since 1977. The federal prison population grew by 0.8 percent (1,653 prisoners) to reach 209,771, the smallest percentage increase since 1980..."

NEW DATA ANALYSIS TOOL ALLOWS USERS TO EXPLORE RECIDIVISM PATTERNS OF RELEASED PRISONERS
"Today the Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Statistics released the first in a series of data analysis tools that will enable the public to explore the recidivism patterns of persons involved with the criminal justice system. The new Prisoner Recidivism Analysis Tool allows users to conduct customized analyses of a large database describing the recidivism of prisoners released in 1994 and followed for a three-year period after release. In 2012, BJS plans to update the tool with new recidivism data on prisoners released in 2005.

The public can use this online tool to analyze a large research database and verify statistics found in government publications, media reports or other sources that use these data. The tool allows users to move beyond the published statistics to explore in more detail the recidivism patterns of released prisoners. Users may examine the recidivism patterns of released prisoners based on one or more attributes, such as gender, age at release, race, Hispanic origin, commitment offense, sentence length, prior arrests and prior commitments. For example, while published reports document the recidivism patterns of women leaving prison, the new tool will allow users to determine the recidivism patterns of younger and older women, women committed for a specific offense or women with different criminal histories.

The Prisoner Recidivism Analysis Tool was developed by Howard N. Snyder, statistician, and Joseph Mulako-Wangota, information technology specialist, at BJS.."

Prisoners in 2008
"
"Presents data on prisoners under jurisdiction of federal or state correctional authorities on December 31, 2008, collected from the National Prisoner Statistics series. This annual report compares changes in the prison population during 2008 to changes from yearend 2000 through yearend 2007. These are the only comprehensive national-level data on prison admissions and releases. Findings cover data on decreasing growth in state and federal prisons through declining admissions and increasing releases; imprisonment rates for prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year by jurisdiction; the number of males and females in prison; age, race, and gender distributions; the number of inmates in custody in state and federal prison and local jails; and custody incarceration rates. The report also includes the count for inmates held within facilities operated by and for the military, U.S. territories, Indian country, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and juvenile authorities.

Highlights include the following:

The U.S. prison population grew at the slowest rate (0.8%) since 2000, reaching 1,610,446 sentenced prisoners at yearend 2008.
Growth of the prison population since 2000 (1.8% per year on average) was less than a third of the average annual rate during the 1990s (6.5% per year on average).
Between 2000 and 2008 the number of blacks in prison declined by 18,400, lowering the imprisonment rate to 3,161 men and 149 women per 100,000 persons in the U.S. resident black population."

Jail Inmates at Midyear 2008 - Statistical Tables
"Presents data on numbers of jails and jail inmates at midyear 2008 and analyzes patterns of growth from 2000 through 2008. These statistical tables include data on rated capacity of jails, percent of capacity occupied, and capacity added. They provide estimates of admissions to jails and detail the volume of movement among the jail population. This web document also includes total numbers for jail inmates by gender, race, and Hispanic origin. Standard errors for jail estimates are included."

Parents in Prison and Their Children
"An estimated 809,800 prisoners of the 1,518,535 held in the nation’s prison at midyear 2007 were parents of minor children, according to a report by the Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). Parents in prison — 52 percent of state inmates and 63 percent of federal inmates — reported having an estimated 1,706,600 minor children. Among state inmates, the percent of parents in prison decreased from 55 percent in 1997 but has remained stable for federal inmates.

About 2.3 percent of the 74 million children in the U.S. resident population who were under the age of 18 on July 1, 2007, had a parent in prison. Black and Hispanic children were about eight and three times, respectively, more likely than white children to have a parent in prison. Among minor children in the U.S. resident population, 6.7 percent of black children, 2.4 percent of Hispanic children, and 0.9 percent of white children had a parent in prison. State inmates who were parents reported that nearly a quarter of their children were age four or younger and reported having two children on average."

Prison Inmates at Midyear 2007
"Presents data on prisoners under jurisdiction of federal or state correctional authorities on June 30, 2007, collected from the National Prisoner Statistics series. This annual report describes changes in the prison population during the first six months of 2007, compared to changes from yearend 2000 through yearend 2006.."