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FULL HOUSE: NOT A WINNING HAND

NCJ Number
141913
Journal
Compiler Volume: 12 Issue: 4 Dated: (Winter 1993) Pages: 4-5
Date Published
1993
Length
2 pages
Annotation
The adult prison population in Illinois has nearly tripled over the past 15 years due to increases in crime, changes in sentencing laws, intensified efforts against illegal drugs, and other public policy decisions.
Abstract
Illinois prisons house nearly 32,000 inmates in a system originally designed to hold only about 20,000. The latest projections indicate that the prison system will reach its capacity ceiling of 36,000 by July 1994. Longer, often mandatory, sentences and an increase in some reported index crimes have resulted in "stockpiling" the most serious offenders in prison. Drug offenders represent the fastest growing population of inmates, comprising more than 25 percent of all prison admissions and about 18 percent of the prison population. As the prison population has grown, the ratio of correctional staff to inmates has dropped sharply. At the same time, assaults on staff have increased, peaking at 1,095 in 1991 before dipping in 1992. Incarceration is one of the most expensive correctional options. The average cost to maintain an adult inmate in an Illinois prison for 1 year is $16,000. In contrast, annual costs for electronic detention and intensive probation are $3,000 and $3,600, respectively.