NCJ Number
196278
Journal
Social Problems Volume: 49 Issue: 2 Dated: May 2002 Pages: 178-193
Date Published
May 2002
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This article explores the perceived relationship between poor economic conditions and increased incarceration through specific studies of the employment status of male criminal defendants charged with burglary and armed robbery and also of the general unemployment rate and the rate of pretrial incarceration of criminal defendants.
Abstract
The authors draw upon prior social science research concerning the relationship between punishment and the living conditions of the poor, specifically concerning the role a labor surplus may play in increased punishment. The authors tested the hypothesis that cities with high levels of unemployment would also exhibit a greater likelihood of pretrial incarceration for unemployed male defendants. The authors further studied whether this likelihood was again increased among the population of African-American defendants as opposed to unemployed defendants of other races. The study data supported the central hypothesis concerning increased pretrial incarceration at times of increased unemployment, but it did not show that African-American defendants were unduly impacted relative to unemployed defendants of other races. Unemployed defendants were found to be 2.5 times more likely to face pretrial incarceration than were their employed counterparts. The authors caution that additional research, especially longitudinal research will be needed to more completely verify this correlation. 2 tables, 14 notes, 39 references