1 in 100 Americans behind bars, report finds

[min0 lee]

Prison spending ballooned from $11 billion to $49 billion in 2 decades

updated 6:38 p.m. ET, Thurs., Feb. 28, 2008

NEW YORK - For the first time in U.S. history, more than one of every 100 adults is in jail or prison, according to a new report documenting Americaâ??????s rank as the worldâ??????s No. 1 incarcerator. It urges states to curtail corrections spending by placing fewer low-risk offenders behind bars.

Using state-by-state data, the report says 2,319,258 Americans were in jail or prison at the start of 2008 â?????? one out of every 99.1 adults. Whether per capita or in raw numbers, itâ??????s more than any other nation.

The report, released Thursday by the Pew Center on the States, said the 50 states spent more than $49 billion on corrections last year, up from less than $11 billion 20 years earlier. The rate of increase for prison costs was six times greater than for higher education spending, the report said.

article continued @ A first: 1 in 100 Americans jailed - Crime & courts - MSNBC.com

 

[Little Wing]

fucking pathetic.

 

[Little Wing]

 

[maniclion]

I wonder how many are in for small amounts of marijuana?

 

[largepkg]

I blame the advance in medical care and the ACLU. You should lose all rights to good health care and healthy food while in the pen.

 

[DOMS]

Well, 14% of the nation's population is Hispanic.

I like China's solution: kill more of the prisoners.

 

[squanto]

I wonder how many are in for small amounts of marijuana?

According to the DEA, over 10% of the prison population, or about 294,000 people are behind bars for simple drug possession.

If any of you are interested, Jeffrey Miron is the director of Undergraduate Studies in Economics at Harvard, and he gave a speech about the economics of drug prohibition. If you have half an hour, you might learn something new.

YouTube Video

 

[AKIRA]

I wonder how many are in for small amounts of marijuana?

..or battery.

 

[kiko]

I like China's solution: kill more of the prisoners.