Crime rate down, but prison population on the rise

HoustonChronicle.com ^ | April 25, 2005, | SIOBHAN McDONOUGH

[tbird5]

WASHINGTON — While the U.S. crime rate has fallen over the past decade, the number of people in prison and jail is outpacing the number of inmates released, the government reports.

The population of the nation's prisons and jails has grown by about 900 inmates each week between mid-2003 and mid-2004, according to figures released by the Bureau of Justice Statistics. By last June 30 the system held 2.1 million people, or one in every 138 U.S. residents.

Texas, the state with the most people behind bars, reported that its prison population climbed from 167,532 inmates in 2003 to 169,110 inmates in 2004, an increase of 0.9 percent.

Paige Harrison, the report's co-author, said the U.S. increase can be attributed largely to get-tough policies enacted in the 1980s and 1990s. Among them are mandatory drug sentences, "three-strikes-and-you're-out" laws for repeat offenders and "truth-in-sentencing" laws that restrict early releases.

"As a whole most of these policies remain in place," she said. "These policies were a reaction to the rise in crime in the '80s and early '90s."

Malcolm Young, executive director of the Sentencing Project, which promotes alternatives to prison, said, "We're working under the burden of laws and practices that have developed over 30 years that have focused on punishment and prison as our primary response to crime."

[BADROTOFINGER]

Duh...JFK

[martin_fierro]

Crime rate down, but prison population on the rise

"Headless Body Found In Topless Bar"

[Richard Kimball]

Maybe the crime rate is down because more criminals are in jail. I love the way that they use indications that the longer sentences are working as an argument to do away with them.

[Rakkasan1]

no kidding. next we'll learn there are very low recidivism rates when we execute murderers.

[JarheadFromFlorida]

Maybe the crime rate is down because more of the people that are committing crimes are now in prison where they belong :)

[SmithL]

It's working, then.

[Polybius]

"Crime rate down, but because prison population on the rise."

[Semper Paratus]

Sun's up longer, temperatures on the rise.

What gives?

[proxy_user]

What about recidivism on FR? This is at least the fourth posting of this article.

Fortunately, JimRobb isn't going to killfile any Freepers.

[Rakkasan1]

Fortunately, JimRobb isn't going to killfile any Freepers don't push him. the day ain't over.

[Rakkasan1]

Fortunately, JimRobb isn't going to killfile any Freepers don't push him. the day ain't over.

[baystaterebel]

Crime rate down, but prison population on the rise Well Daaaaaaaaah! Do the freakin' math knucklehead! Thing is, one moron actually wrote the story and another moron printed it.

[BADROTOFINGER]

Someone wrote an editorial using exactly this situation as an example of how mind-numbingly stupid leftist media eletes are.

The side of the elite is that since the crime rate is down, we can change sentencing laws. Additionally, the question that is asked is, "Why continue with these punative sentencing guidelines?"

The side of the average American is that when criminals are locked up, crime goes down. Additionally, the question asked by the average American is "What the hell is so difficult to figure out about this?"

I wish I could remember who wrote that OP-ED...JFK

[delacoert]

In 2004, one in every 138 U.S. residents was in prison or jail; the previous year it was one in every 140.

The number of prisoners is going up, but the fraction of the US population in prison is going down. Two guesses as which of these correlates best with the crime rate.

[TheLion]

"Crime rate down, but prison population on the rise Well Daaaaaaaaah! Do the freakin' math knucklehead! Thing is, one moron actually wrote the story and another moron printed it."

What is worse is these knuckleheads actually believe this is news!

[quadrant]

What should be our response to crime except punishment and prison?

[Pharmboy]

True true...related.

[Semi Civil Servant]

Crime rate down, but prison population on the rise

'Tis a puzzlement. (/sarc off)

[PMCarey]

The commentary blog on National Review online had a pithy response to this type of headline. The writer wondered if we would ever see a headline like: "Prison population declines, but crime on the rise."