|
|
| State Prison Population Drops |
| By Associated Press |
| Published: 08/20/2001 |
|
The number of people behind bars in state prisons fell during the second half of 2000 in the first decrease since 1972, the Justice Department said. There were more prisoners in state prisons at the end of the year than at the beginning - 1,236,476 to 1,228,455 - and the total number of people in state and federal prisons was up 1.3 percent over 1999. However, that overall rate of growth compared to the average annual growth rate of 6 percent since 1990 and was the lowest percentage gain since 1972. Additionally, the absolute increase of inmates - 8,021 to state prisons and 10,170 to federal prisons - was the smallest since 1980. Criminologists said the slowing growth in overall prison populations, coupled with a decline of 6,243 in the last six months of the year in state prisons, is significant because it may signal the end of America's prison boom. The decline comes after a few years of slowing growth at state prisons. During the first six months of last year, the state prison population grew by 14,264 inmates. During all of last year, 13 states had substantial decreases in their state and federal inmate populations, including Massachusetts (down 5.6 percent), New Jersey (down 5.4 percent), New York (down 3.7 percent) and Texas (down 3.2 percent). Allen J. Beck, a chief Justice Department researcher, said some of the declines may have been caused by states changing parole rules to make revocations less likely. ``In New Jersey and Ohio, they are less likely to revoke parole than in prior years. New York has also become more lenient,'' he said. Dan Macallair, vice president of the San Francisco-based Justice Policy Institute, said attitudes about drug use contributed to the decline. He said communities and judges are getting tired of repeatedly sending drug offenders to prison and are looking for alternatives. Other experts said the prison population should be falling as fast as the crime rate. Violent crime in the United States fell by a record 15 percent last year, the government has said. They study also found that both the state and federal prison systems grew more quickly than ever between 1990 and 2000, when more than 500,000 beds and 351 state facilities were added. Racial disparities in prisons are also holding steady, the report showed. bout 10 percent of all black males between 25 and 29 years old were in federal and state prisons, compared to 2.9 percent of all Hispanic males and 1.1 percent of all white males in the same age group. |
advertise
|
privacy policy
|
add URL
|
about us
|
terms/disclaimer
|
contact us
|
join our team
|
help
Comments:
No comments have been posted for this article.
Login to let us know what you think