NCJ Number
172358
Journal
Corrections Compendium Volume: 23 Issue: 3 Dated: (March 1998) Pages: 8-24
Editor(s)
S Clayton
Date Published
1998
Length
17 pages
Annotation
This summary of findings from a 1997 survey of women's correctional facilities in 47 U.S. States, 9 Canadian Provinces, and the Correctional Service of Canada addresses housing, security classifications, crimes committed, supervisory staff, separate diagnostic centers, visitation privileges, and programs.
Abstract
In U.S. systems, 52,481 female inmates are held in single- sex facilities, and 5,641 are supervised in coed institutions. Institutional dormitories are used most often in the United States to house female offenders. The greatest number of female inmates are held in female-only minimum-security facilities. Females sentenced for violent offenses in the United States and Canada numbered 23,108, with 23,571 inmates held for drug and/or alcohol violations; 18,425 females were incarcerated for property offenses. Separate reception or diagnostic centers for female inmates were reported by 11 of the responding 57 correctional systems. All but one system reported allowing contact visits for inmates, and 95 percent stated that they allowed mother-and-child visits. Mother-and-child program initiatives and innovative vocational training continue to develop to meet the needs of female inmates. 3 tables