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2020 Prisoners in 1 (2020)

handle is hein.death/prsin2020 and id is 1 raw text is: U.S. Department of Justice
Office of Justice Programs
Bureau of Justice Statistics

December 2021, NCJ 302776
Prisoners in 2020 - Statistical Tables
E. Ann Carson, Ph.D., BJS Statistician

In 2020, the number of persons held in state or
federal prisons in the United States declined
15%, from 1,430,200 at yearend 2019 to
1,215,800 at yearend 2020. Only Alaska showed
an increase (2%) in its prison population, while
other jurisdictions showed declines of 7% to
31%. The number of persons sentenced to more
than 1 year in state or federal prison decreased
from 1,379,800 in 2019 to 1,182,200 in 2020. The
combined state and federal imprisonment rate for
2020 (358 per 100,000 U.S. residents) represented
a decrease of 15% from 2019 (419 per 100,000
U.S. residents) and a decrease of 28% from 2010
(500 per 100,000 U.S. residents) (figure 1).
The COVID-19 pandemic was largely responsible
for the decline in prisoners under state and
federal correctional authority. Courts significantly
altered operations for part or all of 2020, leading
to delays in trials and/or sentencing of persons,
and this was reflected in the 40% decrease in
admissions to state and federal prison from
2019. While the number of releases also declined
during 2020, releases occurred at a slower rate
Highlights
At yearend 2020, the number of prisoners under
state or federal jurisdiction had decreased by
214,300 (down 15%) from 2019 and by 399,700
(down 25%) from 2009, the year the number of
prisoners in the United States peaked.
Nine states showed decreases in the number
of persons in prison of at least 20% from 2019
to 2020.
* The prison populations of California, Texas, and
the Federal Bureau of Prisons each declined by
more than 22,500 from 2019 to 2020, accounting
for 33% of the total prison population decrease.
In 2020, the imprisonment rate was 358 per
100,000 U.S. residents, the lowest since 1992.

FIGURE 1
Imprisonment rate per 100,000 U.S. residents, by
age, 2010-2020
Rate per 100,000
700       Age 18 or older
600
600 --    ----          ---------
500 -        ------                ------
All ages
400                                   --
300
200
100
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
Note: Imprisonment rate is the number of sentenced prisoners
under state or federal jurisdiction per 100,000 U.S. residents.
Rates are presented for all ages and age 18 or older as of
December 31 of each year and are based on prisoners with a
sentence of more than 1 year. See appendix table 1 for rates.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics,
2010-2020; and U.S. Census Bureau, postcensal resident
population estimates for January 1 of the following calendar year.

w-

* From 2010 to 2020, the sentenced imprisonment
rate for U.S. residents fell 37% among blacks;
32% among Hispanics; 32% among Asians,
Native Hawaiians, and Other Pacific Islanders;
26% among whites; and 25% among American
Indians and Alaska Natives.
The number of admissions to federal prison
(down 19,000) and to state prison (down 211,800)
both declined by 40% from 2019 to 2020.
* Releases from federal and state prisons
decreased during 2020 (down 58,400 or almost
10% from 2019), but at a lower rate than the
decrease in admissions.

BIS

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