Survey of Inmate Characteristics

 
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WEDNESDAY, MAY 19, 1990                         BJS                           

202-307-0784
 
     An estimated 16 percent of prison inmates were armed with
a gun when they committed the offense for which they were
serving time, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) announced
today.  About half of the armed inmates (or about 8 percent of
all prisoners) said they had fired...

Comparing Federal and State Prisoners

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BJS  SUNDAY, OCTOBER 2, 1994                            
202-307-0784

            COMPARING FEDERAL AND STATE PRISONERS

     WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Most federal prisoners are drug
offenders, but almost half of state prisoners are serving
time for violent crimes.  Offenders in federal prisons are
almost three times as likely as state prisoners to be
incarcerated for a drug offense, according...

State Courts Convicted Almost 900,000 Felons During 1992

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

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TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 1995                           202-307-0784

STATE COURTS CONVICTED ALMOST 900,000 FELONS DURING 1992

    WASHINGTON, D.C. -- State courts throughout the U.S. convicted
almost 900,000 felons during 1992, the Department of Justice announced
today.  One-third of the convictions were for drug offenses.

    The volume of felony...

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SUNDAY, MARCH 3, 1996                                202/307-0784



       TWO-THIRDS OF SEX OFFENDERS IN STATE PRISONS
                          HAD VICTIMIZED A CHILD

             FAMILY MEMBERS OR ACQUAINTANCES 
                   COMMIT MOST CHILD MURDERS

     WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Children younger than 18 were the
victims in almost 20 percent of the violent crimes committed by
state prisoners, according to a new Justice Department report
released today.  More than...

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 1995          202/307-0784

 23 PERCENT OF THOSE ARRESTED FOR WEAPONS OFFENSES
           ARE YOUNGER THAN 18 YEARS OLD

     WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Almost a quarter of those
arrested for weapons offenses are minors, the
Department of Justice said today.  In a study of
people arrested for weapons offenses during 1993,
23 percent were...

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SUNDAY, AUGUST 4, 1994                               202/307-0784

       MORE PROSECUTIONS AND TOUGHER SENTENCING GUIDELINES
         PROMPT INCREASED INCARCERATIONS OF NON-CITIZENS

     WASHINGTON, D.C. -- An increase in the number of
prosecutions and convictions for federal drug and immigration
offenses, as well as changes in mandatory time-served provisions,
prompted a four-fold increase in the number of non-citizens
incarcerated in federal prisons between 1984...

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

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SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 1997             202/633-3047

     SIXTY PERCENT OF CONVICTED SEX OFFENDERS
            ARE ON PAROLE OR PROBATION

        Rapes and Sexual Assaults Decline

     WASHINGTON, D.C. -- According to a report
released today by the Justice Department's Bureau
of Justice Statistics (BJS), on any given day in
1994 almost 60 percent of the 234,000 convicted
sex...

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

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SUNDAY, JANUARY 12, 1997            202/633-3047

ALMOST A THIRD OF ALL CONVICTED STATE FELONS
    WERE SENTENCED FOR DRUG TRAFFICKING 
               OR POSSESSION

     WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Drug offenders made up
almost a third of the 872,200 felons convicted in
state courts during 1994, the Justice Department
announced today.  Property crimes accounted for
another third and violent...

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

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SUNDAY, JANUARY 18, 1998            202/307-0784
         
NATION'S PRISONS AND JAILS HOLD MORE THAN 1.7
MILLION     Up Almost 100,000 in a Year

     WASHINGTON, D.C. -- As of last June 30 the
nation's prisons and jails held 1,725,842 men
and women, an increase of more than 96,100
inmates over the prior year, the Justice
Department's Bureau...

                                   
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MOST JAILS THAT TEST FOR DRUGS FIND AT LEAST ONE INMATE WHO TESTS POSITIVE


     WASHINGTON, D.C. -- An estimated 10 percent of the
inmates tested for drugs in local jails during June 1998
tested positive for one or more illegal drugs, the Justice
Department's Bureau of Justice Statistics announced today. 
More than...

More Than 200,000 Firearms Applications Rejected in 1999
Defendants Charged with Federal Firearms Offenses Increased from 1998 to 1999

WASHINGTON, D.C.- Approximately 536,000 of the more than 22.2 million individual applications to purchase or pawn firearms have been rejected based on federal, state or local laws since the inception of the Brady Act...

FEDERAL DRUG LAW CHANGES LED TO LONGER PRISON SENTENCES

WASHINGTON, D.C. - More than 38,200 people were referred to federal prosecutors for alleged drug offenses during 1999, the Justice Department's Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) announced today. About 84 percent of these suspects were subsequently charged in a U.S. district court.

Of...

OVER 18,000 CHARGED WITH FEDERAL MONEY LAUNDERING FROM 1994 THROUGH 2001

WASHINGTON, D.C. - About 18,500 defendants faced federal money laundering charges in U.S. courts during the years 1994 through 2001, the Justice Department's Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) reported today. Approximately 10,600 of these...

STUDY FINDS MORE THAN HALF OF ALL CONVICTED VIOLENT FELONS HAD A PRIOR RECORD

Thirty Percent of Those Who Murdered Were Younger Than 21

WASHINGTON - Fifty-six percent of the violent felons convicted in the nation's 75 most populous counties...

ONE IN EVERY 31 U.S. ADULTS WAS IN A PRISON OR JAIL OR ON PROBATION OR PAROLE AT THE END OF LAST YEAR

WASHINGTON - The U.S. adult correctional population, incarcerated or in the community, reached 7.2 million men and women, an...

GROWTH IN PRISON AND JAIL POPULATIONS SLOWING:

16 States Report Declines in the Number of Prisoners

WASHINGTON - As of June 30, 2008, state and federal correctional authorities had jurisdiction or legal authority over 1,610,584 prisoners. Additionally, 785,556 inmates were held in...