Jails and prisons serve different purposes in the U.S. criminal justice system. Learn who they hold, how they operate, and what they have in common.

Key takeaways:Jails are generally local facilities used for short-term detention and are commonly operated by county or municipal authorities.Jails hold many people awaiting trial or other court proceedings, as well as some people serving shorter sentences.Prisons are generally state or federal facilities for people convicted of crimes and serving ...

Thirty-four people have died in county jails so far this year.

How are people dying?It typically takes months for Los Angeles County to publicly issue causes of death for people who have died in LA County jails. And even once autopsy reports are finalized, they don’t tell the whole story. When the coroner rules that a death is the result of “natural causes,” jail conditions can still be to blame. Researchers h ...

Finding employment after incarceration was already hard, but bias in AI hiring tools is making the job search more difficult. Policymakers must act now to prevent further harm.

For people leaving prison, finding a job is one of the strongest predictors of a successful return to community life. Research suggests formerly incarcerated employees can be a real asset in the workplace: a peer-reviewed 2018 study of entry-level hires found that employees with conviction histories stayed in their jobs longer and voluntarily quit ...