Report Says Texas State Jails an Expensive Failure in Need of Reform by Report Says Texas State Jails an Expensive Failure in Need of Reform by Matt Clarke According to a November 2012 report published by the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a conservative think tank, the Texas state jail system …

Report Analyzes New Jersey Jail Population by Report Analyzes New Jersey Jail Population In partnership with the Drug Policy Alliance, Luminosity has issued a report that analyzes New Jersey’s jail population. The study’s goal “is to use this profile to identify opportunities to responsibly reduce New Jersey’s jail population while …

Racial Disparities Diminishing, Especially Among Female Prisoners by Racial Disparities Diminishing, Especially Among Female Prisoners   As dispiriting are the racial inequities of mass-incarceration, recent trends are cause for a sliver of cautious optimism, according to a 2013 report from The Sentencing Project, a non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C. …

The Globalization of Supermax Prisons, edited by Jeffrey Ian Ross (Rutgers University Press, 2013). 240 pages, $28.95 paperback by Gary Hunter The Globalization of Supermax Prisons, edited by Jeffrey Ian Ross (Rutgers University Press, 2013). 240 pages, $28.95 paperback Book review by Gary Hunter "Zero tolerance” is a phrase that …

Ohio DOC Director Wants Return to Stricter Law after 2012 Spike in Positive Drug Tests by Ohio DOC Director Wants Return to Stricter Law after 2012 Spike in Positive Drug Tests Drug testing in Ohio prisons in October 2012 revealed the highest level of prisoner drug use in more than …

America’s Prisons: A Road to Nowhere by Ben Notterman America’s Prisons: A Road to Nowhere by Ben Notterman Video of Henry McCollum’s release from a North Carolina prison in September 2014 shows the exonerated death row prisoner making his way through a crowd of excited onlookers and into his family’s …

Arrest-Related Deaths Program Assessment: Technical Report BJS 2015 Arrest-Related Deaths Program Assessment Technical Report Duren Banks Lance Couzens Caroline Blanton Devon Cribb RTI International NCJ 248543 March 2015 Contents Executive summary .....................................................................................................................1 1 Background ..............................................................................................................................3 2 Methodology ............................................................................................................................4 2.1 Probabilistic case-level linking ......................................................................................4 2.1.1 Calculation of similarity scores .........................................................................5 2.1.2 …

Trends in U.S. Corrections, Sentencing Project, 2015 FACT SHEET: TRENDS IN U.S. CORRECTIONS Trends in U.S. Corrections U.S. State and Federal Prison Population, 1925-2014 2014: 1,508,636 1,600,000 1,400,000 Number of People 1,200,000 1,000,000 800,000 600,000 400,000 200,000 2014 2010 2006 2002 1998 1994 1990 1986 1982 1978 1974 1970 1966 …

Deportations Still High Despite Decline from Record Levels by Derek Gilna Deportations Still High Despite Decline from Record Levels by Derek Gilna s political efforts to reform the nation’s immigration laws continue to falter despite garnering headlines and generating contentious public debate, the latest statistics from Immigration and Customs Enforcement …

Texas Prison Population Drops as Guard Shortage Persists by Matthew Clarke Texas Prison Population Drops as Guard Shortage Persists by Matt Clarke In spite of a three-year downward trend, Texas continues to lead the nation with the largest state prison population. At the same time, the state has pursued a …

Education is Better than Punishment: Something We Can All Support! by Vivian D. Nixon Education is Better than Punishment: Something We Can All Support! by Vivian D. Nixon I learned in the harshest way possible that in the United States of America, every felony conviction, no matter what the judge …

Texas Prison Homicides Rise Sharply in 2012, Decline in 2013 by Texas Prison Homicides Rise Sharply in 2012, Decline in 2013 Texas officials said they were at a loss to explain an unexpected surge in prison homicides during 2012, when the number of murders rose to the highest level in …

Report: Police State Gets Credit for Increased Incarceration Rates, But Not Crime Reduction by Report: Police State Gets Credit for Increased Incarceration Rates, But Not Crime Reduction   There are more police in the United States than ever before, and crime rates are at their lowest levels in 30 years. …

U.S. Department of Justice Releases Former Prisoner Report on Sexual Victimization by Matthew Clarke U.S. Department of Justice Releases Former Prisoner Report on Sexual Victimization   by Matt Clarke   On May 12, 2012, the Bureau of Justice Statistics of the U.S. Department of Justice released a report on a …

California Auditor: Data Hinders Effectiveness of Juvenile “Realignment” by California Auditor: Data Hinders Effectiveness of Juvenile “Realignment”   It’s the rare public policy that succeeds in spite of bureaucratic incompetence and a lack of vision. But, according to a recent state audit, California’s decision in 2007 to transfer the supervision …

Pew Center Report Finds Increasing Incarceration Expensive and Ineffective by Matthew Clarke Pew Center Report Finds Increasing Incarceration Expensive and Ineffective   by Matthew Clarke   On June 6 2012, the Pew Center on the States issued a report on the consequences of the trend toward longer terms of imprisonment …

No Panacea, but Obamacare Could Help Reduce Prison Population, Report Says by No Panacea, but Obamacare Could Help Reduce Prison Population, Report Says   Even before the presidential election secured the full implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), commonly referred to as "Obamacare,” many prisoner advocates were championing the …

Justice System Disregards Families of Youth Offenders, Report Says by Justice System Disregards Families of Youth Offenders, Report Says   A collaborative report from an alliance of grassroots organizations proclaims that families of juvenile offenders are part of the solution to youth crime, not the problem.   According to Justice …

Probation and Parole in the U.S., 2013 BJS 2014 U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Statistics October 2014, NCJ 248029 Erinn J. Herberman, Ph.D., and Thomas P. Bonczar, BJS Statisticians A t yearend 2013, an estimated 4,751,400 adults were under community supervision—a decline of about …

Recidivism Performance Measures for Private Halfway Houses in Pennsylvania by Alex Friedmann Recidivism Performance Measures for Private Halfway Houses in Pennsylvania by Alex Friedmann In 2013, Pennsylvania Department of Corrections (DOC) officials announced they would provide financial incentives to privately-operated community corrections facilities – halfway houses – that reduce the …