Examining State Spending Trends, 2010 - 2015
From the early 1970s into the new millennium, the U.S. prison population experienced unprecedented growth, which had a direct influence on state budgets. In recent years, however, lawmakers in nearly every state and from across the political spectrum have enacted new laws to reduce prison populations and spending. This report, which builds upon the...
Building Trust in a Diverse Nation
According to the 2010 Census, 37% of the U.S. population reported their race and ethnicity as something other than “non-Hispanic White alone.” The numbers of people of color have increased by almost 30% between 2000 and 2010, and by 2060, they will make up nearly 60% of the country. Our country is diversifying rapidly and, despite their best effort...
Since 1970, there has been a nearly five-fold increase in the number of people in U.S. jails—the approximately 3,000 county or municipality-run detention facilities that primarily hold people arrested but not yet convicted of a crime. Despite recent scrutiny from policymakers and the public, one aspect of this growth has received little attention: ...
Experimenting with Alternative Forms of Bail in New York City’s Criminal Courts
Statistics show that money bail is unaffordable and out of reach for many New Yorkers. On any given day, 7,000 people are detained pretrial at Rikers Island and other New York City jails because they cannot make bail. While judges in New York can choose up to nine different forms of bail at arraignment—include “alternative” forms that require littl...
This section includes various Legal Orientation Program fact sheets describing a range of topics of interest to detained immigrants.
This section includes various Legal Orientation Program fact sheets describing a range of topics of interest to detained immigrants.
This section includes various Legal Orientation Program fact sheets describing a range of topics of interest to detained immigrants.
This section includes various Legal Orientation Program fact sheets describing a range of topics of interest to detained immigrants.
This section includes various Legal Orientation Program fact sheets describing a range of topics of interest to detained immigrants.
The Impact of Video Visits on Washington State Prisons
For people who are incarcerated, separation from family and friends is a difficult fact of life, as are the financial and logistical barriers that keep their loved ones from visiting them in prison. Because research has shown that contact with loved ones is a critical factor in improving outcomes for incarcerated people returning home, prison syste...
This special report offers a primer on status offenses—misbehaviors that are only illegal because of a person’s age and that unfairly land many kids in the justice system.
Every year, thousands of American children are shuffled through the justice system for misbehaviors like skipping school and running away – referred to as “status offenses”—when their families, schools, and communities don’t know how else to help them. While it may seem like the best option, research shows that the juvenile system just isn’t equipp...
More Incarceration Will Not Make Us Safer
For the Record Evidence Brief Series Despite its widespread use, research shows that the effect of incarceration as a deterrent to crime is minimal at best, and has been diminishing for several years. Indeed, increased rates of incarceration have no demonstrated effect on violent crime and in some instances may increase crime. There are more effect...
Responsibly Interpreting Statistics on Violent Crime
For the Record Evidence Brief Series With a few hyper-localized exceptions that require targeted attention, violent crime rates are lower today than they have been at any point over the past four decades. However, this era of public safety has been misrepresented by some media reports and public commentary concluding that violent crime increases in...
An interview with Prof. Andrew Papachristos on using network science to understand neighborhood and gun violence. Prof. Papachristos was at the Vera Institute of Justice as part of the Neil A. Weiner Research Speaker Series. You can learn more about his talk here.