http://usgovinfo.about.com/cs/censussta ... sonpop.htm

America's prison population topped 2 million inmates for the first time in history on June 30, 2002 according to a new report from the Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS).
The 50 states, the District of Columbia and the federal government held 1,355,748 prisoners (two-thirds of the total incarcerated population), and local municipal and county jails held 665,475 inmates.

By midyear 2002, America's jails held 1 in every 142 U.S. residents. Males were incarcerated at the rate of 1,309 inmates per 100,000 U.S. men, while the female incarceration rate was 113 per 100,000 women residents.

Of the 1,200,203 state prisoners, 3,055 were younger than 18 years old.

In addition, adult jails held 7,248 inmates under 18.
Federal, state and local prisons see increases
During the 12-month period ending last June 30, the local jail population increased by 34,235 inmates, the largest increase (5.4 percent) since 1997. State prisons added 12,440 inmates (a 1 percent increase) and the federal prison system grew by 8,042 (5.7 percent).

More than 40 percent of the total increase in the number of people incarcerated during the period was accounted for by the growth in the federal prison population. During the year the responsibility for housing sentenced District of Columbia felons was transferred to the federal system and completed on December 31, 2001. This accounted for one-quarter of the federal increase between midyear 2001 and midyear 2002 and contributed to making the federal system the largest prison jurisdiction in the nation.

State prison populations
Twenty states experienced an inmate population increase of 5 percent or more during the 12 months ending June 30, 2002, led by Rhode Island (up 17.4 percent) and New Mexico (11.1 percent). Nine states, including several large states, experienced prison population declines.

Illinois had the largest percentage decrease (down 5.5 percent), followed by Texas (down 3.9 percent), New York (down 2.9 percent), Delaware (down 2.3 percent) and California (down 2.2 percent).

Non-citizen prison population also growing
As of last June 30, state and federal correctional authorities held 88,776 non-citizens, a 1 percent increase from the 87,917 held a year earlier. Sixty-two percent were held in state prisons and 38 percent in federal institutions.

Private prison population drops
Privately operated prisons held 86,626 inmates last June 30, down 6.1 percent from the number held on December 31, 2001. Texas reported the largest decline, from 16,331 to 10,764 prisoners.

More new inmates than new prison beds
For the first time since midyear 1997 the number of additional jail inmates grew faster than the number of new jail beds during the 12 months preceding June 30, 2002. Nonetheless, at midyear 2002 local jails were operating at 7 percent below their officially rated capacities. At the end of 2001, the most recent period for which the data are available, state prisons were operating from 1 to 16 percent above capacity, and federal prisons were at 31 percent above capacity.

http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/abstract/pjim02.htm for original story

Wow!

1 in 142! On the plus side I guess law enforcement is getting the job done. On the negative side, there sure were plenty of people breaking the law!

On the negative side, about a quarter of those people or more are imprisoned for non-violent drug crimes.

--PunkDavid

The law enforcement may be getting the job done, but who is to say that all of the laws are just?

its really simple the way to reduce the prison population. i cant believe noone has even thought of this.


dont break the law

I wish I could agree with this, but I know too many cops and prosecutors to believe in that one.

Wow. That means that 17.04 of the users on RM are incarcerated!

--PunkDavid

there are a high number of filly fans in the sports forum

I guess after the Super Bowl, win or lose, we can count on a dozen or so more then.

--PunkDavid

Whatever??

Yes, because so often cops and prosecutors are looking to put people away when they know they're innocent. Just look what they did to poor OJ.

Would you care to expand on that brilliant assessment? Perhaps you think that long prison terms are a good way to deal with drug addicts and petty criminals?

--PunkDavid

I have that question, as well.

I'm inclined to agree with David on this one, but I would still like to see some stats regarding that. That's the big question I want answered with regards to this issue.

Yeah because parole is such a better place for drug addicts who can keep using and selling drugs from their home. If you want to live next to people who make meth than go ahead. My fiance is a parole officer and overseas close to 100 of these so called "non-violent" drug addicts who have been in jail for drug offenses. She's been decontaminated a few times because these people's apartments are considered meth labs. But if you consider this acceptable behavior then let them all free. Hopefully your family doesn't live in any of these apartment complexes. I think you have no idea how big a problem meth is.

What does non-violence have do with anything? A crime is a crime.

Every study I have EVER seen on this says that money spent on detox and rehabilitation for drug users is more cost efficient than prison and parole. Maybe they could give that a try. It might even pay for the next war!

--PunkDavid

If an action committed by a person is not harming any other people, then it should not be a crime. Simple as that.

However, you raise some excellent public safety issues. Should people be allowed to have meth labs in their home? Hell no. That would be like zoning heavy industrial in a residential zone. I may be also willing to agree with a ban on certain substances because the state of mind that these people are put in may harm others in the process (DUI is a good example of this).

Nevertheless, the proper way to take care of such a situation is not incarceration, but mandatory treatment.

That's just silly. Murder. Sale of two ounces of marijuana. Same thing. You got it.

--PunkDavid

Just what I was proposing below. I agree with that. So does Bill O'Reilly, in fact.

You should come & do a study on Boulder County. They spend all kinds of money on rehab. The have therapists the parolees can visit and everything. The fact is unless someone wants to get off drugs they will continue to use them.

Next time I'll tell you about a raid my fiance did with the Boulder police. Its a non-violent story about the kids that live with these drug addicts & dealers.