Data reported by 795 jurisdictions for 1,113 local jails indicated that overall jail occupancy was 99 percent of rated capacity in 1992. About one in every 428 adult U.S. residents were in jail on June 30, 1992. Jail inmates were 44 percent black, 40 percent white, 15 percent Hispanic, and 1 percent other races. An estimated 2,804 juveniles were housed in adult jails on June 30, 1992, and the average daily juvenile population for the year was 2,527. Based on the 1988 census, 503 jurisdictions had an average daily population of at least 100 jail inmates. In 1992, these jurisdictions operated 814 jail facilities that held 362,217 inmates, or about 81 percent of all jail inmates in the country. Jurisdictions having an annual number of jail inmates between 2,000 and 22,220 were in 11 States (California, Texas, Florida, New York, Illinois, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Louisiana, Maryland, and Georgia). The number of inmates in the 25 largest jurisdictions was 5 percent greater on June 30, 1992, than on June 28, 1991. Local jail jurisdictions frequently housed inmates for other authorities. About 25 percent of the 503 large jurisdictions reported that one or more of their jail facilities were under court order or consent decree to reduce the inmate population. Alternatives to incarceration included boot camps, daily work release programs, electronic monitoring, house arrest, and day reporting. Of the large jurisdictions, 308 said they tested for drugs. Educational programs were offered in more than two-thirds of the jurisdictions, alcohol and drug treatment programs were offered in more than half, and psychological or psychiatric counseling programs were provided in about 40 percent. Inmate deaths were reported by 35 percent of the 503 jurisdictions. The survey methodology is described in an appendix. 19 tables and 2 figures
Jail Inmates, 1992
NCJ Number
143284
Date Published
August 1993
Annotation
As of June 1992, local jails held an estimated 444,584 persons; from July 1991 to June 1992, the number of jail inmates grew by 4 percent, about the same rate as for the previous 12 months.
Abstract
Date Published: August 1, 1993