WASHINGTON, D.C. – The number of persons under the supervision of adult correctional systems in the United States has fallen to its lowest level since 2003, it was announced.
According to a study to released Friday by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, an estimated 6,899,000 persons were under the supervision of adult correctional systems at year end 2013, down from 6,940,500 at year end 2012. The decrease of 41,500 offenders in 2013 resulted in the number of persons under correctional supervision falling below 6.9 million for the first time since 2003.
Attorney General Eric Holder called the drop a “significant milestone.”
“While we clearly have much more work to do, it is my hope that we are witnessing the start of an overall trend that will continue – and accelerate – as our reform efforts take full effect,” the Attorney General said. “As I have said many times, we cannot incarcerate our way to becoming a safer nation. That’s why we need to focus on commonsense sentencing reforms and on proven, evidence-based solutions like diversion programs for those convicted of low-level, nonviolent offenses.”
By yearend 2013, the number of persons under adult correctional supervision was the smallest number observed since 2003. About 7 in 10 offenders under adult correctional supervision were supervised in the community on probation (3.91 million) or parole (853,200) at yearend 2013, compared to about 3 in 10 incarcerated in state and federal prisons (1.57 million) or local jails (731,200).
The entire drop in the correctional population during 2013 was due to a decline in the number of probationers (down 32,100) and persons held in local jails (down 13,300). The parole population (up 2,100) and prison population (up 4,300) increased, partially offsetting the overall decline in the total correctional population.
While the U.S prison population increased during 2013, the number of inmates under the jurisdiction of the Federal Bureau of Prisons decreased (down 0.9 percent or 1,900) for the first time since 1980. The growth in the U.S. prison population was attributed to the increase in the number of inmates under the jurisdiction of state prisons (up 0.5 percent or 6,300).
About 1 in 35 adults in the United States (or 2.8 percent of the adult resident population) was under some form of correctional supervision at yearend 2013. This rate was unchanged from 2012, when it dropped to the lowest rate observed since 1997. About 1 in 51 adults was on probation or parole at yearend 2013, compared to 1 in 110 incarcerated in prisons or local jails.
The population-based correctional supervision rate (the number of persons under adult correctional supervision per 100,000 U.S. adult residents) declined to 2,830 persons per 100,000 adults at yearend 2013, from 2,870 per 100,000 at yearend 2012. Since 2007, the correctional supervision rate has declined more rapidly than the number of persons under adult correctional supervision, but half of the decrease in this rate came from the increase in the size of the U.S. adult resident population.
The composition of the correctional population remained unchanged between 2010 and 2013. Probationers (57 percent) accounted for the majority of the correctional population, and prisoners made up almost a quarter (23 percent) of the population. Parolees (12 percent) and jail inmates (11 percent) made up slightly more than a tenth each of the total population.
In 2013, females accounted for almost 25 percent of the probation population, up from about 22 percent in 2000. They made up 14 percent of the jail population in 2013, up from about 11 percent in 2000. The percentage of females on parole or incarcerated in state or federal prisons remained unchanged between 2000 and 2013. Since 2010, the female jail population has been the fastest growing correctional population, increasing by an average annual rate of 3.4 percent.
