Life in Lockup: An In-depth Look at Reasons for Incarceration in the U.S.
From: https://www.criminaljusticedegreehub.com/incarceration-in-the-u-s/
Life in Lockup: An In-depth Look at Reasons for Incarceration in the U.S.
The United States jails more of its citizens than any other country in the world. And the rate of incarceration has surged in recent decades. What’s behind the trend of mass incarceration?
In the Lead (But Not for a Good Reason)
The U.S. outpaces all other nations in incarceration rate — and it’s not even close. But mass incarceration wasn’t always part of the American way of life.
Prisoners per 100,000 population, select countries (1)
U.S.: 716
Rwanda: 492
Russia: 475
Brazil: 274
Spain: 147
Australia: 130
China: 121
Canada: 118
Austria: 98
France: 98
Germany: 79
Denmark: 73
Sweden: 67
India: 30
Incarceration rate by state (prisoners per 100,000 population) (2)
Washington: 269
Oregon: 361
California: 439
Idaho: 474
Nevada: 472
Arizona: 572
Utah: 238
Montana: 378
Wyoming: 385
Colorado: 445
New Mexico: 323
North Dakota: 226
South Dakota: 416
Nebraska: 247
Kansas: 317
Oklahoma: 654
Texas: 648
Wisconsin: 366
Illinois: 373
Minnesota: 185
Iowa: 309
Missouri: 508
Arkansas: 552
Louisiana: 867
Michigan: 445
Indiana: 434
Kentucky: 458
Tennessee: 432
Mississippi: 686
Alabama: 648
Ohio: 448
Florida: 556
Georgia: 479
South Carolina: 495
North Carolina: 373
Virginia: 468
West Virginia: 363
Maryland: 387
Delaware: 443
New Jersey: 286
Pennsylvania: 403
New York: 288
Vermont: 265
New Hampshire: 209
Maine: 148
Massachusetts: 200
Rhode Island: 197
Connecticut: 376
Alaska: 340
Hawaii: 302
Sentencing Guidelines
Length of sentence, often as a result of mandatory minimum sentencing, is a primary reason why the U.S. prison population remains high.
Average sentence for burglary (3)
U.S.: 16 months
Canada: 5 months
United Kingdom: 7 months
Federal sentencing guidelines first adopted in the 1980s were aimed at standardizing punishment for serious crimes across the country. And changes over the years have focused on drug crimes, in particular, including mandatory minimums for crimes related to certain drugs, even if those crimes were nonviolent. (4, 5, 6)
1984
Sentencing Reform Act of 1984 establishes the U.S. Sentencing Commission and federal sentencing guidelines.
1986
The Anti-Drug Abuse Act establishes mandatory minimum federal sentences. The minimum for selling or possessing crack is 100 times harsher than for powder cocaine. In the following decade, the prison population doubles.
1991
The U.S. Supreme Court rules against a Michigan man in his effort to overturn his life sentence for possessing 1.4 pounds of cocaine.
1994
Inspired by the rape and murder of Polly Klaas, California enacts its “three strikes” law mandating that any offender with three felonies receive minimum sentences of 25 years to life.
Federal law mandates a sentence of life without parole for anyone whose third strike is a federal crime.
The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act provides federal grants for states that adopt truth-in-sentencing policies, including that individuals convicted of violent crimes serve at least 85% of their sentence.
1995
Nearly two-dozen other states adopt measures similar to that in California.
Drug offenders soon make up 25% of the prison population.
10 times as many third-strikers are serving time for drug possession as for second-degree murder.
The federal sentencing commission recommends making the punishment for crack the same as for powder cocaine; for the first time since the inception of the commission, Congress rejects its recommendation.
2002
A survey finds that 74% of district court judges and 83% of circuit court judges believe mandatory drug sentences are too harsh.
2010
The Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 reduces the 100:1 disparity between crack and powder cocaine to 18:1.
Between 1997 and 2010, the average sentence for federal child pornography offenders rose from 20.59 months to 118 months, a 500% increase. In 2010, the vast majority of federal child porn offenders had no prior criminal record at the time of their sentencing.
The War on Drugs
Since President Ronald Reagan made it a major focus of his domestic policy in the early 1980s, drug crime has helped fill prisons across the country.
Americans jailed for drug offenses (1)
1980: 41,000
2011: 500,000
Average length of prison stay for drug offenders (1)
1986: 22 months
2001: 62 months
1 in 2
Federal prisoners incarcerated for drug offenses (1)
8 in 10
Drug arrests in 2013 for possession rather than sale or manufacturing (7)
Immigration
Policies that require law enforcement to detain those suspected of being illegal immigrants also are helping the prison population balloon — and adding to the bill for taxpayers.
Average daily population of immigration detainees (8)
1994: 5,000
2001: 19,000
2010: 33,000
$164
Daily cost to hold a single immigration detainee
That’s $2 billion a year. (9)
1 in 5
U.S. households of “mixed” immigration status (8)
Private Prisons
More and more states and cities are handing control of incarceration to private companies. As a result, incarceration is becoming an ever-growing industry.
A decade ago, only 5 private prisons operated in the U.S. Today, there are more than 100 of them. (10)
Prisoners in private facilities (10)
2004: 2,000
2014: 62,000
2024: 360,000*
* Projected
37%
Increase in private prison population between 2002 and 2009 (11)
500%
Increase in profits for Corrections Corporation of America over the past 20 years (12)
90%
Occupancy rate guaranteed by many states, with some even guaranteeing 100% occupancy (12)
Sources:
1. https://www.sentencingproject.org/
2. https://www.governing.com/
3. https://www.nytimes.com/
4. https://famm.org
5. https://www.motherjones.com
6. https://scdc.dc.gov/
7. https://www.drugwarfacts.org/
8. http://www.detentionwatchnetwork.org
9. https://www.aclu.org
10. https://www.globalresearch.ca
11. https://www.propublica.org
12. https://truthout.org/