Fewer Americans Are Now Going to Prison,Highlighting aShiftinU.S.Policy
AlissaFleck
StatisticsreleasedbytheJusticeDepartmentrevealtheprisonpopulationintheUnitedStatesisthelowestithasbeeninrecenthistory.In2012,theprisonpopulationdeclinedforthethirdyearinarow,followinga40-yeartrendofmassimprisonmentintheU.S.,accordingtotheNewYorkTimes.Between2011and2012,theprisonpopulationdecreasedby1.7percent,which,whenconsideredalongsidethedeclineof thetwo previousyears, amounts to asignificantfigure.
Intheearly1970s,imprisonmentratesintheU.S.begantoclimbannually,reachinganall-timehighin2009.AccordingtoMSNMoney,stateprisonpopulationsjumped700percentbetween1970and2009.In2009,therewere1,615,487inmates in stateandfederal prisons combined.
Expertssaythereisnowaythesenumbersarerandom—athree-yearfallinthenumberspointstoanemergingtrend,ratherthananaturalfluctuation.Thesefiguresindicate,aboveall,amajorchangeinthewayswenowdecidewhomtoincarcerateinour country,and for whatoffenses.
OneexplanationistherecentrecessionintheU.S.andtheassociatedcostsofmaintainingprisons.Between2011and2012,prisonsinanumberofstateshadtoshuttheirdoors,andmanyprisonbuildingprojectswereabandonedduetorisingcosts,notestheTimes.AreportreleasedbytheSentencingProject,aresearchandadvocacygroupthatpushesforprisonreform,saysthatequatestonearly 30,000beds disappearinginprisonsthroughoutthecountry.
Relatedly,thedeclineinprisonpopulationshasalsoresulted,inpart,fromaresponsetoprisonovercrowding.CaliforniawasorderedbytheSupremeCourtin2012toreduceitsprisonpopulations,andotherstatesfollowedsuitforfearofsimilarorders,includingHawaii,Massachusetts,Michigan,NewJersey,AlaskaandNewYork,accordingtothePewCharitableTrusts.Ultimately,however,neitheroftheseexplanationsamountstothegreatestcauseforthedecliningnumberswearenow witnessing.
Instead,thereseemstobeashiftin theAmericanmindsetandactualreduction incrimeatplaybehindthesechangingnumbers.ManywouldargueAmericans—politiciansandlawmakersaswellasthegeneralpublic—arebeginningtounderstandthatlockingpeopleupdoesnotnecessarilyresultinareductionincrime.
Inadditiontobudgetaryandovercrowdingconcerns,crimerateshaveactuallygonedowninthepastfewyears,andsentencinglawsandpublicopinionhavechangednotably.Indeed,crimeratesaredowninstatesthathavecontinuedwithprisongrowthandthosethat havehaltedit.
Research-basedsupportfromtheAmericanpublichasalsobeenamajorfactorinprisonreform,atatimewhenonein100adultsinthecountryisimprisoned.Droppingcrimeratesmeanslessgeneralfearamongthepublic,whichamountstofewerpoliticiansrunningcampaignsthatattackcrime,notestheTimes.Instead,Americansarecurrentlymoreinterestedinspending money oneducationandhealthcarethanin lockingpeople up.
AccordingtoastatementreleasedbythePewCharitableTrustsasapartoftheirpublicsafetyperformanceproject,“Oftenwithoverwhelmingbipartisanvotes,leadersin[stateswithdropsinprisonpopulations]haveshortenedtermsbehindbarsforlower-leveloffendersordivertedthemfromprisonaltogether.Severalstates...reinvestedlargesumsoftheresultingsavingsintoprobationandparoleinaneffortto...improvepublicsafety.”
Indeed,bothindividualsonconservativeandliberalendsofthespectrumagreeprisonreformisneeded,andmoreconservativestates,likeTexas,haveledthe
chargeinchanginghowoffendersaretreated.Conservativeleaderswhowereformerlytoughoncrimearenowsomeofthosecallingloudestforprisonreform,accordingto theWallStreetJournal.
AdamGelb,directorofthePewCharitableTrusts’publicsafetyperformanceproject,notedinaninterviewwiththeTimes:“Thestatesthatareshowingdropsarethestateswhoarethinkingabouthowtheycanapplyresearch-basedalternatives thatworkbetter [thanprison] andcostless.”
There’sanoverwhelmingattitudethatnonviolentoffendersdonotnecessarilydeservetobeinjail,andthatratherthanmerelybeingwatched,offendersshouldhaveanopportunitytoalsosucceed,accordingtoRightonCrime,aprisonreformprojectoftheTexasPublicPolicyFoundation.Andthesepolicieshaveprovennotonly successful, but cost-effective.
AccordingtoMSNMoney,“OneGeorgiadrugcourt,forexample,founditssentencingprogramofmandatoryemploymentorschooling,groupcounselingandfrequentdrugtestscoststhestate$13 aday,perperson—comparedwiththe
$50adayneededtofeedandhouseastateprisoner.”Overall,theseprogramsequate to lower costs for taxpayers.
Still,therateofpeopleimprisonedintheU.S.issignificantlyhigherthanothercountries.
AccordingtoCaliforniaPrisonFocusandtheDepartmentofJusticein2012,the
U.S.hasmoreprisonsandprisonersthananyothercountry.In2012,theU.S.imprisonedmorethanfourtimesasmanypeopleasRussia,thecountrythatfounditself insecondplacein terms of prisonpopulations.
WhilethenumberofpeopleincarceratedintheU.S.continuestofallandcrimewithit,thecountry still has alongway to go withregardto prisonreform.
Name:
Date:
1.Whathappenedto theUnitedStatesprisonpopulationin2012?
AItwentdownfor the thirdyearinarow.
BItwentupforthethirdyearinarow. C Itwentupforthefirsttimesince 1970.DItstayedthesame.
2.Thedeclineinprisonpopulationinthe UnitedStatesis aneffect.Whatis one cause?
Ahavingmoreprisons thanany other country
Btherelease of statisticsby the JusticeDepartment
Ca700% increaseinstateprisonpopulations between1970and2009
Dthecostof maintainingprisons
3.Americans areless interestedinputtingpeopleinprisonthanthey usedto be.Whatevidencefromthepassagesupports this statement?
AImprisonmentrates inthe U.S.beganto climbannually inthe early 1970s andcontinuedtoclimbuntil2009,whenthey reachedanall-timehigh.
BOftenwithoverwhelmingbipartisanvotes,leaders insomestates haveshortenedterms behindbars forlower-leveloffenders or divertedthemfromprisonaltogether.
CAccordingtoexperts,thethree-yearfallintheU.S.prisonpopulationis notrandom.Itpoints toanemergingtrend,ratherthananaturalfluctuation.
DIn2012,theU.S.imprisonedmore thanfourtimes as many peopleas Russia,thecountrythatranks secondinthe worldforprisonpopulation.
4.Whatcouldbe areasonthatAmericans areless interestedinputtingpeople inprisonthanthey usedto be?
ABetween2011and2012,theU.S.prisonpopulationdecreasedby 1.7percent.
BAmericans now believe thatputtingpeopleinprisondoesnotnecessarily resultinless crime.
CTheSentencingProjectis a researchandadvocacygroupthatworks towardprisonreform.
DSomeconservativepoliticalleaders usedtobetoughoncrime.
5.Whatis thispassagemostly about?
Aa reportthatfoundprisonalternatives costthestate of Georgia less thansendingsomeonetoprison
BwheretheU.S.prisonpopulationrankscomparedtoothercountries aroundtheworld
Ca SupremeCourtorderrequiringthe state of Californiatoreduceits prisonpopulations
DtherecentdecreaseinU.S.prisonpopulationandthecauses of thatdecrease
6.Readthefollowingsentence:“Indeed,bothindividuals onconservative andliberalends of thespectrumagreeprisonreformis needed,andmoreconservativestates,likeTexas,haveledthe chargeinchanginghowoffenders aretreated.”
Whatdoes the wordreformmeaninthe sentenceabove?
Aa change made toimprovesomething
Ba statistic aboutprisonpopulation
Ca conservativeleaderwhois toughoncrime
Da crimerate thathas fallen
7.Choosetheanswerthatbestcompletes thesentence below.
TheU.S.prisonpopulationhasdeclinedforseveralreasons,costanda changeinpublic opinion.
A insteadB althoughC suchasDnever
8.Accordingtothearticle,whatdoexperts say aboutthethree-yearfallintheU.S.prisonpopulation?
9.Thepassagediscusses severalpossiblecauses ofthe decreaseinU.S. prisonpopulationfrom2010-2012.Identify two of them.
10.Basedoninformationfromthepassage,make a predictionaboutwhethertheU.S.prisonpopulationwillgo upor downnextyear.Explainyour answerwithevidencefromthepassage.