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Concept
Incarceration in the United States
Summary
Incarceration in the United States is one of the primary means of punishment, penal labor and rehabilitation, for the commission of crimes or other offenses. Prison terms are typically reserved for those found guilty of more serious crimes, defined as felonies by state and federal legislatures. Over five million people are under supervision by the criminal legal system. Nearly two million people are incarcerated in state or federal prisons and local jails, 2.9 million people are on probation, and over 800,000 people are on parole. At year-end 2021, 1,000,000 people were incarcerated in state prisons; 157,000 people were incarcerated in federal prisons; and, 636,000 people were incarcerated in local jails. By year-end 2021, the U.S. prison population had declined 25% since reaching its peak in 2009. The nearly 1.2 million people imprisoned in 2021 were nearly six times the prison population 50 years ago, before the prison population began its dramatic growth.
Drug offenses account for the incarceration of about 1 in 5 people who are incarcerated in U.S. prisons. Violent offenses account for the incarceration of more than 3 in 5 people (62%) in state prisons. Property offenses account for the incarceration of about 1 in 7 people (14%) in state prisons.
The United States maintains a higher incarceration rate than most developed countries, with incarceration rate growing sharply since the 1970s. According to the latest available data at the World Prison Brief on May 7, 2023, the United States has the sixth highest incarceration rate in the world, at 531 people per 100,000; and the largest prison and jail population in the world. Expenses related to prison, parole, and probation operations have an annual estimated cost of around 38 billion in costs annually.
Since reaching its peak level of imprisonment in 2009, the U.S. has averaged a rate of decarceration of 2.3% per year. This figure includes the anomalous 14.
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