BJS
   U.S. Department of Justice
   Bureau of Justice Statistics

Prison Statistics

   Summary findings

   On December 31, 1996,

          -- 1,182,169 prisoners were under Federal or State jurisdiction

          (includes prisoners in custody and persons under the legal
          authority of
          a prison system but who are held outside its facilities)
          -- the total increased 5.0% from yearend 1995,
          less than the average annual growth of 7.3% since 1990.

          -- there were an estimated 427 prison inmates per 100,000 U.S.
          residents -- up from 292 at yearend 1990.

   Two-thirds of sentenced prisoners entering prison in 1995 were new
   court commitments, and nearly a third were parole or other conditional
   release violators.

   Among persons released from prison in 1995, 76% were placed on
   probation, parole, or some other type of conditional release.

   In 1995, an estimated 46% of State prison inmates were incarcerated
   for a violent offense.
                              1995
                        Percent of inmates
Most serious offense    in State prison
_______________________________________

Total                          100%
Violent offenses                46
Property offenses               24
Drug offenses                   23
Public-order offenses            7
Other/unspecified                1



   Among sentenced Federal inmates in 1995, an estimated 60% were serving
   a sentence for a drug offense.