NCJ Number
154537
Journal
Corrections Compendium Volume: 20 Issue: 4 Dated: (April 1995) Pages: 4-18
Date Published
1995
Length
15 pages
Annotation
This survey of foreign inmates in U.S. prisons indicates that unchecked immigration can drain already scarce correctional resources and that legal and illegal immigrants populate jails and prisons in every State.
Abstract
Most incarcerated foreign nationals are from the Western Hemisphere, especially from Mexico, Cuba, and the Dominican Republic. Correctional records are not currently accurate enough to provide reliable statistics on how many legal and illegal aliens are incarcerated, where they are from, and how much they cost State and Federal agencies. However, the current survey estimates that about 72,000 foreign nationals are in U.S. prisons. Only four States (California, Colorado, New Jersey, and South Carolina) and the Federal Bureau of Prisons report having written policies on foreign inmates. At least 26 States have correctional facilities that offer English as a second language classes for inmates. Incarcerated foreign nationals cost the United States over $1 billion in fiscal year 1993-1994. Detailed data are provided on incarcerated foreign nationals, correctional policies on foreign inmates, alien inmates and language barriers, and the release of foreign nationals. 2 notes and 4 tables