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Prison Populations and Incarceration Rates



Federal and state authorities accounted for more than 1.6 million prisoners at the end of 2010. That’s about 497 sentenced prisoners per 100,000 residents – a rate that varies greatly throughout the country.

Data below shows prison populations and incarceration rates for each state. Statistics are compiled by the Bureau of Justice Statistics.

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics

Related Content

  • Study Links State Prison Reforms to Drops in Welfare Spending
  • Prison reforms may result in better conditions for inmates, but those improvements come at the expense of welfare cash assistance and other government relief for the needy, according to a study released this month by Rice University and Louisiana State University.


  • Jerry Brown Submits New Plan to Ease Prison Overcrowding
  • The governor has asked for $450 million over the next two years to lease up to 4,100 beds in county jails and private prisons and to continue shipping 8,500 inmates to other states. He has also proposed changes to credit programs that lead to early release.



  • Former Calif. Lt. Gov. Criticizes State's Prison Policies
  • In a speech where he hinted at a possible run for governor, former Lt. Gov. Abel Maldonado called out Gov. Jerry Brown for his handling of prison crowding in the state, calling the policies being pursued an "early release" program.

  • Prisons Get Rated on Yelp
  • The business and restaurant rating site is now being used to rate an unconventional entity -- prisons. Inmates are reporting about the quality of the food, the friendliness of deputies, and more.





  • Report: Recidivism Rate Down as Texas Focuses on Treatment
  • Thanks partly to greatly expanded rehabilitation and treatment programs, Texas sent 11 percent fewer ex-convicts back to prison in recent years a significant drop in recidivism that is being replicated across the country, according to a new study.



  • Private Prison Closure Worries Rural Kentucky Town
  • After a sex scandal at a privately run prison in rural Kentucky, the state cut off the institution's funding and now it's shutting down — and that worries town officials in an impoverished Appalachian community where incarceration meant jobs and economic survival.

  • 4 Prisoners, Including 1 Murderer, Escaped Kansas Jail
  • Four inmates escaped early Wednesday from a Kansas jail where they were transferred because of overcrowding at a state prison, and three of the men — including a convicted murderer — remained on the loose by late afternoon.





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GOVERNING Data is your source for state and local government statistics and public records.


Feel free to use any data or visualizations in your own reports with attribution and a link to the source.


Contact: Mike Maciag, mmaciag@governing.com

Daily Digit

21

Number of states with pension systems that aren't "fiscally sound," according to investment research firm Morningstar, Inc.



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