Fact Sheet Statistics

With  five percent of the world’s population, our country now houses twenty five percent of the 
world’s reported prisoners. More than 2.3 million Americans are now in prison, and another 
5 million remain on probation or parole. The United States has  by far the world’s  highest  
incarceration  rate.  

Our prison population has skyrocketed over the past two decades as we have incarcerated 
more people for non-violent crimes and acts driven by mental illness or drug dependence.

The costs to our federal, state, and local governments of keeping repeat offenders in the criminal 
justice system continue to grow during a time of increasingly tight budgets.

Existing practices too often incarcerate people who do not belong in prison, taking resources 
away from locking up high-risk, violent offenders who are a threat to our communities.

Transnational criminal activity, much of it directed by violent gangs and cartels from Latin America, 
Asia and  Europe, has permeated the country.  Mexican cartels alone now operate in more than 
230 communities across the country.

Incarceration for drug crimes has had a disproportionate impact on minority communities, despite 
virtually identical levels of drug use across racial and ethnic lines.

Post-incarceration re-entry programs are haphazard and often nonexistent, undermining public safety 
and making it extremely difficult for ex-offenders to become full, contributing members of society.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/49341120/Fact-Sheet-S306-Feb2011