DATA FOR THE REPORT WERE OBTAINED FROM BULLETINS AND SPECIAL REPORTS PUBLISHED BY LEAA. EACH STATE AND FEDERAL CORRECTIONAL FACILITY REPORTED ITS ANNUAL TOTAL INMATE POPULATION AND DEATH FIGURES TO LEAA ON DECEMBER 31 OF EACH YEAR STUDIED. THIS INFORMATION WAS COMPILED AND ORGANIZED INTO TABULAR CHARTS IN THE NATIONAL PRISONER STATISTICS BULLETIN, WHICH WAS A MAJOR SOURCE OF INFORMATION FOR THE REPORT. DUE TO LARGE POPULATION VARIANCES AMONG INSTITUTIONS, DEATHS WERE REPORTED PER 1,000 INMATES. THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS HAD FEWER DEATHS THAN THE U.S. BUREAU OF PRISONS OR THE NATIONAL AVERAGE FOR THE YEARS 1972-75. THE DEPARTMENT HAD AN AVERAGE RATE OF 2.52 DEATHS PER 1,000 INMATES, COMPARED WITH OTHER RATES OF 2.57 AND 3.09. MALE DEATHS EXHIBITED A LOW AVERAGE. BECAUSE OF THE SMALLER NUMBER OF FEMALE INMATES, APPROXIMATELY 50 PERCENT OF THE NATION'S CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTIONS HAD NO FEMALE DEATHS DURING THE STUDY PERIOD. THE AVERAGE NUMBER OF DEATHS PER 1,000 FEMALE INMATES WAS 1.97 IN TEXAS AND 1.67 FOR THE UNITED STATES AS A WHOLE. RATES FOR MALE INMATE DEATHS AND TOTAL INMATE DEATHS WERE APPROXIMATELY THE SAME IN ALL CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTIONS. PROBLEMS TO CONSIDER IN COMPARING DEATH RATES ARE NOTED. EXTENSIVE STATISTICAL DATA ARE APPENDED. (DEP)