U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government, Department of Justice.

NCJRS Virtual Library

The Virtual Library houses over 235,000 criminal justice resources, including all known OJP works.
Click here to search the NCJRS Virtual Library

Reducing Prison Crowding - An Overview of Options

NCJ Number
98935
Author(s)
M K Harris
Date Published
1984
Length
29 pages
Annotation
This report presents a matrix that portrays the number and range of mechanisms that various criminal justice actors can use to reduce prison crowding.
Abstract
The mechanisms for reducing prison overcrowding are listed under three broad options: (1) reducing the number of offenders admitted to prisons, (2) shortening the time offenders spend in prison, and (3) increasing system capacity. The mechanisms are also classified according to the principal actor likely to be involved in implementing the mechanism: legislators, prosecutors, the defense bar, the judiciary, private agencies, probation and parole agencies, Governors, and departments of corrections.