Prisons - Rate Of Incarceration, Prisons And Their Capacities, Rising Prison Populations, Privatization Of Prisons, Prison Work Programs And Industries

In Prisoners in 2003 (Washington, DC: Bureau of Justice Statistics, November 2004), Paige M. Harrison and Allen J. Beck reported that the prison population increased 2.1% between 2002 and 2003, although at a lower rate than the average annual growth rate of 3.4% since 1995. According to Harrison and Beck, the number of individuals under state jurisdiction grew by 20,370 (1.6%) between 2002 and 2003, and the number of those under federal jurisdiction by 9,531 (5.8%). The rate of increase has declined both for those in custody and those under prison jurisdiction since 1995. (See Table 4.1.)

The incarceration rate of prisoners in 2003 was 482 per 100,000 residents, an increase from 411 in 1995. Among those states exceeding the national incarceration rate were Louisiana (801), Mississippi (768), Texas (702), and Oklahoma (636). Maine (149), Minnesota (155), and North Dakota (181) were among the lowest rates. (See Table 4.2.)