Presents data on the growing number of persons in the United States under some form of correctional supervision for 1996: 3.2 million on probation, 510,400 in jail, 1,127,528 in prison, and 704,709 on parole. The data for State and Federal prison inmates are reported for 1996: sex, race, Hispanic origin, admission type, release type, sentence length, escapes, probation and parole violations, facility crowding, deaths in prison, and inmates entering prison under sentence of death. Information on jail inmates is included in the report, as well as data on persons held in U.S. military confinement facilities. A special section presents 31 tables summarizing the 1996 Survey of Inmates in Local Jails. This report is the fifth in a series conducted approximately every 5 to 7 years since 1972.