Last updated on: 1/28/2015 12:25:47 PM PST | Author: ProCon.org

Incarcerated Felon Population by Type of Crime Committed, 1974-2012

Prison tower 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

Offense Category	2000	2008	2010	2012
Violent a	620,000 (51.4%)	715,400 (52.4%)	725,000 (53.2%)	707,500 (53.8%)
Property b	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-order c	72,400 (6%)	125,900 (9.2%)	142,500 (10.5%)	140,200 (10.7%)
Other/unspecified d	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.

c Includes 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

Offense Category	2000	2008	2010	2012
Violent a	13,740 (10.4%)	15,483 (8.5%)	15,000 (7.9%)	13,700 (10.2%)
Property b	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-order c	32,325 (24.5%)	59,298 (32.5%)	59,298 (32.5%)	68,800 (25.8%)
Other/unspecified d	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" (777 KB) , bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov, Dec. 2010
The United States Department of Justice (USDOJ), "Prisoners in 2011" (863 KB) , bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov, Dec. 2012
The United States Department of Justice (USDOJ), "Prisoners in 2013," (1.8 MB) , bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov, Sep. 2014
The United States Department of Justice (USDOJ), "Correctional Populations in the United States, 2011" (702 KB) , bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov, Dec. 2012
The United States Department of Justice (USDOJ), "Correctional Populations in the United Stated, 2013" (417 KB) , bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov, Dec. 2014

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