As of 2012, there were 1,511,497 people incarcerated in US state and federal prisons and 744,500 people incarcerated in US county jails.
Felons with a sentence of one year or less normally serve their term of incarceration in county jails along with other inmates convicted of misdemeanors.
I. Combined State & Federal: Number of Sentenced Prisoners
| Percentage of State and Federal Prisoners | |||||||
| Offense | 1974 | 1986 | 1997 | 2000 | 2008 | 2010 | 2012 |
| Violent | 52.5% | 64.2% | 46.4% | 47.2% | 47.3% | 47.7% | 47.7% |
| Property | 33.3% | 22.9% | 14% | 19.1% | 17.0% | 16.7% | 17.1% |
| Drug | 10.4% | 8.8% | 26.9% | 25.3% | 22.4% | 21.7% | 20.5% |
| Public-order | 1.9% | 3.3% | 8.9% | 7.8% | 11.9% | 13.4% | 13.8% |
| Other/unspecified | 2.0% | 0.9% | 3.7% | 0.4% | 1.2% | 0.6% | 0.7% |
| Total Number of State and Federal Prisoners | ||||
| Offense Category | 2000 (% of total) | 2008 (% of total) | 2010 (% of total) | 2012 (% of total) |
| Violent | 633,740 (47.2%) | 730,833 (47.3%) | 740,000 (47.7%) | 721,200 (47.7%) |
| Property | 256,135 (19.1%) | 262,880 (17.0%) | 259,800 (16.7%) | 258,300 (17.1%) |
| Drug | 338,076 (25.3%) | 346,479 (22.4%) | 336,300 (21.7%) | 309,100 (20.5%) |
| Public-order | 104,725 (7.8%) | 185,198 (11.9%) | 207,500 (13.4%) | 209,000 (13.8%) |
| Other/unspecified | 5,363 (0.4%) | 19,194 (1.2%) | 9,000 (0.6%) | 11,200 (0.7%) |
| Totals: | 1,338,039 | 1,544,634 | 1,552,600 | 1,511,497 |
II. State Jurisdiction: Number of Sentenced Prisoners
| Total Number of Sentenced State Prisoners | ||||
| Offense Category | 2000 | 2008 | 2010 | 2012 |
| Violenta | 620,000 (51.4%) | 715,400 (52.4%) | 725,000 (53.2%) | 707,500 (53.8%) |
| Propertyb | 246,000 (20.4%) | 251,800 (18.4%) | 249,500 (18.3%) | 247,100 (18.8%) |
| Drug | 263,800 (21.9%) | 251,400 (18.4%) | 237,000 (17.4%) | 210,200 (16.0%) |
| Public-orderc | 72,400 (6%) | 125,900 (9.2%) | 142,500 (10.5%) | 140,200 (10.7%) |
| Other/unspeciiedd | 4,100 (0.3%) | 17,800 (1.3%) | 7,900 (0.6%) | 10,000 (0.8%) |
| Total State Prisoners: | 1,206,300 | 1,362,300 | 1,361,900 | 1,314,900 |
Notes:
a Includes murder, manslaughter, non-negligent manslaughter, rape, other sexual assault, robbery, assault, and other violent crimes.
b Includes burglary, larceny, motor vehicle theft, fraud, and other property crimes.
cIncludes weapons, drunk driving, court offenses, commercialized vice, morals and decency offenses, liquor law violations, and other public-order offenses.
d Includes juvenile and other unspecified offense categories.
III. Federal Jurisdiction: Number of Sentenced Prisoners
| Number of Sentenced Federal Prisoners | ||||
| Offense Category | 2000 | 2008 | 2010 | 2012 |
| Violenta | 13,740 (10.4%) | 15,483 (8.5%) | 15,000 (7.9%) | 13,700 (10.2%) |
| Propertyb | 10,135 (7.7%) | 11,080 (6.0%) | 10,300 (5.4%) | 11,200 (7.4%) |
| Drug | 74,276 (56.4%) | 95,079 (52%) | 95,079 (52%) | 98,900 (56.0%) |
| Public-orderc | 32,325 (24.5%) | 59,298 (32.5%) | 59,298 (32.5%) | 68,800 (25.8%) |
| Other/unspecifiedd | 1,263 (1.0%) | 1,394 (1.0%) | 1,394 (1.0%) | 1,200 (0.6%) |
| Total Federal Prisoners: | 131,739 | 182,334 | 190,700 | 193,861 |
Notes:
a Includes murder, negligent, and non-negligent manslaughter, robbery, and other violent crimes.
b Includes burglary, fraud, and other property crimes.
c Includes immigration, weapons, and other public-order offenses.
d Includes offenses not classified.
IV. Sources
- Jeff Manza, PhD, and Christopher Uggen, PhD, Locked Out: Felon Disenfranchisement and American Democracy, 2006
- The United States Department of Justice (USDOJ), “Prisoners in 2009”
, bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov, Dec. 2010 - The United States Department of Justice (USDOJ), “Prisoners in 2011” , bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov, Dec. 2012
- The United States Department of Justice (USDOJ), “Prisoners in 2013,”
, bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov, Sep. 2014 - The United States Department of Justice (USDOJ), “Correctional Populations in the United States, 2011” , bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov, Dec. 2012
- The United States Department of Justice (USDOJ), “Correctional Populations in the United Stated, 2013” , bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov, Dec. 2014
