Mandatory Incarceration Status of Under Custody Prison Population

• NCJ Number: 105923
• Author(s): W R Chapman
• Date Published: 1986
• Length: 58 pages
• Corporate Author: New York State Dept of Correctional Services
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/; NCJRS Photocopy Services
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

The commitment offense type and prior criminal record of inmates held under custody were examined to determine the proportion of persons held in New York State correctional facilities who were subject to a legislatively mandated prison sentence.

Abstract

As of June 1986, 35,230 inmates were incarcerated in State prisons. Of these, 82 percent were subject to mandatory incarceration requirements either because of the serious nature of the conviction offense (Class A-1 felony and Class B and C violent felony) or because they had been convicted of a second or third felony offense. Approximately 8 percent were convicted of offenses that presumptively carry a mandatory prison sentence, but in which there are provisions permitting other sentencing alternatives (e.g., certain drug and weapons offenders). The remaining 10 percent were eligible for a disposition other than State prison. A chronology of legislation affecting probation and sentencing and tabular data are appended.