×
You've used up your 3 free articles for this month. Subscribe today.
The Color of Corporate Corrections: Overrepresentation of People of Color in the Private Prison Industry
Loaded on March 15, 2013
by Christopher Petrella
published in Prison Legal News
March, 2013, page 16
by Christopher Petrella and Josh Begley
Filed under:
Private Prisons,
Racial Discrimination,
Statistics/Trends.
Locations:
California,
United States of America.
While data generated by the federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) and state departments of corrections (DOCs) have long demonstrated persistent racial disparities in rates of incarceration, no comparative study until now has considered the racial composition of select state-contracted, privately-operated prisons around the nation. …
Full article and associated cases available to subscribers.
As a digital subscriber to Prison Legal News, you can access full text and downloads for this and other premium content.
Already a subscriber? Login
More from this issue:
- Abuse in Los Angeles Jails Leads to Investigations, Lawsuits and Eventual Reforms, by Michael Brodheim
- Colorado Seeks New Use for Empty Prison
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Nevada Prison Industries Exploiting Businesses and Workers, by Bob Sloan
- The Color of Corporate Corrections: Overrepresentation of People of Color in the Private Prison Industry, by Christopher Petrella
- British Call Center Fires Employees to Hire Prison Slave Labor
- Why Are Prisoners Committing Suicide in Pennsylvania?, by Matt Stroud
- Federal Court Grants Six-Month Extension to Reduce CDCR Prison Population
- Alaska Supreme Court Revives Prisoner’s “Shy Bladder” Suit
- Historic $45 Million Settlement in Washington State Prison Phone Class-action Suit, by Matthew Clarke
- China Pledges to Stop Harvesting Organs from Executed Prisoners
- Prison Reforms Under Maine’s New DOC Commissioner, by Lance Tapley
- Former California Prison Guard Convicted of Lying about Injury Sustained at Sex Club
- Colorado: CCA Doctor Disciplined for Role in Prisoner’s Death
- $2.6 Million Jury Award for Prisoner Beaten in Los Angeles County Detox Cell, by Matthew Clarke
- $4.1 Million Settlement for Cook County Jail Prisoners Shacked During Labor
- California Prison Psychiatrists Reap Rewards from State Bidding War
- Tennessee DOC Accused of Covering Up Violent Incidents, by Alex Friedmann
- Prison Doctor’s Failure to Follow Prescribed Hernia Treatment States Claim
- 7th Circuit Reaffirms Voluntariness of BOP’s Inmate Financial Responsibility Program, by Derek Gilna
- Second Circuit Reverses Summary Judgment for Non-Treatment of Prisoner’s HCV
- Eighth Circuit: § 1997e(e) Bars Compensatory Damages for First Amendment Religious Claims; Qualified Immunity Upheld
- DC Court Disbars Former Federal Prosecutor for Misconduct, by Derek Gilna
- Indigent Prisoner’s Damages Claim in Legal Mail Case Survives Summary Judgment
- U.S. Citizens Mistakenly Snared, Deported by DHS and ICE, by Derek Gilna
- South Carolina Sex Offender’s Lifetime Satellite Monitoring Held Unconstitutional
- “Shocks the Conscience” Test Applied to Conditions at Civil Commitment Center
- Have the Media Stopped Covering Courts?
- Unique Brazilian Prison Alternative Celebrates 40-Year Anniversary, by Lyla Bugara
- Eleventh Circuit: No Right to Spanish-language RDAP Program
- Former New York Prisoner Exonerated, Receives $2 Million Settlement
- $2 Million Settlement in Mailman’s Death at New York City Jail
- Fifth Circuit Reverses $659,300 Katrina-Related Jury Award, by Matthew Clarke
- Equitable Tolling of AEDPA Includes Non-English Speaking Petitioners
- Illinois Woman Awarded $70,000 for Strip Search Based on Canine Alert
- Oregon ACLU Sues Jail over Mail Policy; County Quickly Capitulates
- Eighth Circuit: Procedurally Defaulted Grievances Decided on Merits are Considered Exhausted
- California Governor Approved Parole for 377 Life-Sentenced Murderers in 2012, by John Dannenberg
- Eleventh Circuit: Corizon Policy Led to Prisoner’s Paralysis; $1.2 Million Verdict Upheld
- Los Angeles County Settles Civil Detainee Wrongful Death Claim for $750,000
- Eighth Circuit Upholds Child Porn Supervised Release Condition
- California Prison Town Files for Bankruptcy, by John Dannenberg
- Wisconsin Supreme Court Clarifies Sex Offender Registration for Homeless Prison Releasees
- News in Brief
More from Christopher Petrella:
- Consequences of California’s Realignment Initiative, June 12, 2014
- Slowly Closing the Gates: A State-by-State Assessment of Recent Prison Closures, June 15, 2013
- The Color of Corporate Corrections: Overrepresentation of People of Color in the Private Prison Industry, March 15, 2013
- Private Prison Monopolies, Oct. 15, 2012
More from these topics:
- News in Brief, Aug. 1, 2025. Staff-Prisoner Assault, Private Prisons, Misconduct/Corruption, Guard Misconduct, Systemic Medical Neglect, Male Reproductive, Malpractice, Escapes, Guard Brutality/Beatings, Stun Guns/Tasers, Pepper Spray/Tear Gas, Restraints, Excessive Force (Wrongful Death), Juvenile Prisons, Bureau of Prisons (BOP), Bribery/Extortion/Theft.
- $6.75 Million Settlement Reached in Suit Accusing Massachusetts Guards of Retaliatory Assaults on Prisoners, Aug. 1, 2025. Racial Discrimination, Retaliation, Guard Brutality/Beatings.
- Multiple Prisoner Suits Accuse Guards of Violence at Virginia BOP Lockup, Aug. 1, 2025. Racial Discrimination, False Charges (Disciplinary Hearings), Guard Brutality/Beatings, Restraints, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Discrimination (Transgender).
- Tennessee Legislature Passes Bill to Penalize Private Prisons for High Mortality Rates, Aug. 1, 2025. Private Prisons, Corrections Corporation of America/CoreCivic.
- Shady Firm Awarded $78 Million Contract for Services at Florida’s “Alligator Alcatraz”, Aug. 1, 2025. Private Prisons, Environmental Law, Immigration.
- Prison Gerrymandering Alive and Well in Oklahoma, Aug. 1, 2025. Racial Discrimination, Census.
- Ninth Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Arizona Challenge to Private Prisons, July 15, 2025. Private Prisons, Eighth Amendment, Thirteenth Amendment, rights, Fourteenth Amendment, rights.
- Ohio Supreme Court Says Sheriff Must Get and Disclose Records of Private Contractors, July 15, 2025. Private Prisons, Contractor Liability, Public Records Act.
- Class Incarceration Has Become a Prominent Factor in Mass Incarceration, July 1, 2025. Racial Discrimination, Racial Profiling, Racial/Ethnic Bias/Profiling, Bias/Discrimination, Police Bias, Disproportionality.
- Maryland Targets Highest-in-Nation Racial Incarceration Gap, May 1, 2025. Racial Discrimination, Racial/Ethnic Bias/Profiling.

