CENSUS OF STATE CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES - ADVANCE REPORT, 1974

• NCJ Number: 25642
• Author(s): ANON
• Date Published: 1975
• Length: 36 pages
• Sponsoring Agency: US Dept of Justice
• Corporate Author: National Criminal Justice Information & Statistics Service
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/
• Publication Type: Statistics
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

PRELIMINARY RESULTS OF A SURVEY OF ABOUT 600 STATE CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES, WHICH OBTAINED INFORMATION ON TYPES OF INSTITUTIONS, NUMBER OF INMATES, FACILITY CONDITIONS, EXPENSES, STAFF, AND PROGRAMS.

Abstract

AS OF JANUARY 1974, THERE WERE ABOUT 600 ADMINISTRATIVELY SEPARATE CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES IN THE UNITED STATES OPERATED OR FUNDED BY STATE GOVERNMENTS. THESE FACILITIES, WHICH HOUSED ALMOST 190,000 PRISONERS, RANGED FROM SMALL COMMUNITY CENTERS, OR HALFWAY HOUSES, WHOSE INMATES OFTEN HELD JOBS IN THE COMMUNITY, TO CLOSED PRISONS CONTAINING UPWARDS OF SEVERAL THOUSAND SECURELY CONFINED INMATES. STAFF VARIED IN SIZE FROM A FEW PERSONS TO AS MANY AS 500, AND ANNUAL EXPENDITURES RANGED FROM A FEW THOUSAND DOLLARS TO SEVERAL MILLION DOLLARS. THIS CENSUS OF STATE CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES, CONDUCTED FOR LEAA BY THE U.S. BUREAU OF THE CENSUS IN JANUARY 1974, IS THE FIRST ATTEMPT ON A NATIONWIDE SCALE TO COLLECT DATA ON THESE FACILITIES. INFORMATION WAS OBTAINED ON THE TYPES OF INSTITUTIONS AND THE NUMBER OF INMATES HOUSED THEREIN, THE AGE AND CONDITION OF PHYSICAL PLANTS, INSTITUTIONAL PAYROLL AND OPERATING EXPENSES, STAFF PERSONNEL, AND PROGRAMS AND SERVICES PROVIDED. PRELIMINARY FINDINGS ON SELECTED TOPICS FROM THE CENSUS, ALONG WITH SUPPORTING STATISTICAL TABLES, ARE PRESENTED IN THIS ADVANCE REPORT. THESE FINDINGS SHOWED THAT CONDITIONS VARIED GREATLY FROM INSTITUTION TO INSTITUTION, EVEN AMONG FACILITIES OF THE SAME TYPE. IN MANY CASES THIS APPEARED TO RESULT NOT FROM THE SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS OF THE CLIENTELE BUT FROM DISPARITIES IN AVAILABLE RESOURCES. SOME INSTITUTIONS WERE RELATIVELY NEW AND BENEFITED FROM THE LATEST INNOVATIONS IN PRISON DESIGN; OTHERS WERE CHARACTERIZED BY PHYSICAL FACILITIES BUILT YEARS AGO. SOME SUFFERED FROM OVERCROWDING AND OTHERS, EVEN IF UNDERUTILIZED IN TERMS OF PHYSICAL CAPACITY, WERE HANDICAPPED BY INADEQUATE STAFF, BUDGET, AND PROGRAMS. IN MANY INSTITUTIONS, A VARIETY OF REHABILITATIVE PROGRAMS AND SERVICES WAS AVAILABLE. A MORE DETAILED TREATMENT OF THE TOPICS COVERED IN THIS DOCUMENT IS PLANNED FOR A FUTURE REPORT. (SNI ABSTRACT)