The Prison Policy Initiative has released a report showing that the US mass incarceration system costs $445 billion annually, with 50% of the money spent on correctional systems going towards paying staff and 25% of government spending on the criminal justice system going towards policing.
The Prison Policy Initiative has released a report challenging the effectiveness of specialty courts as an alternative to incarceration, arguing that they often fall short of their goals and can even expand the reach of the criminal legal system.
The Prison Policy Initiative has found that specialty courts, while intended to reduce jail and prison populations and support rehabilitation, often fail to meet these goals and can even expand the reach of the punishment system, while also undermining community-based solutions.
The Prison Policy Initiative has highlighted the importance of independent data projects in tracking police misconduct, providing models for local and national efforts to hold law enforcement accountable.
Failure to appear in court due to confusion, transportation problems, child care needs, illness, or a simple scheduling mistake is resulting in 19 million additional nights in jail each year, making it a major and preventable driver of incarceration in the United States.
Parole systems in the US are broken and need to be fixed to ensure that people who have demonstrated rehabilitation are given a fair chance to be released, as parole can be an important tool for decarceration and reducing prison overcrowding.
The Prison Policy Initiative released a report outlining 34 criminal legal system reforms for 2026, which advocates say could reduce incarceration and reverse decades of harmful “tough-on-crime” policies.
Incarcerated women in the U.S. are routinely punished for menstruating due to prison rules that fail to account for basic biological needs, resulting in a punitive environment where menstruation can result in punishment.
The Prison Policy Initiative released a report revealing flaws in parole boards across 35 states, showing that releases are declining due to systemic injustice in the parole process.
A new report from the Prison Policy Initiative reveals that youth of color with disabilities are disproportionately subject to physical assault by staff while incarcerated, highlighting the need for decarceration efforts to prioritize the most marginalized youth.
The Prison Policy Initiative has released a report showing that neurodivergent youth are disproportionately confined and experience higher rates of assault by staff, and are more likely to be funneled into the criminal legal system than receive the care they need.
The US incarcerates women at higher rates than nearly every country in the world, with South Dakota having the highest rate, surpassing every country in the world.
The Prison Policy Initiative report shows that while the number of youth in confinement has dropped over the last two decades, racial disparities in the juvenile system remain stark and are worsening, with Black and Indigenous youth being confined at far higher rates than their white peers.
The National Consumer Law Center has found that pay-to-stay fees are authorized in more than half of U.S. states, resulting in the seizure of inheritances from incarcerated or formerly incarcerated people, disproportionately affecting low-income and Black families and hindering wealth transfer and economic stability.
New York has become the first state to make all phone calls from state prisons free, following a new agreement between the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision and telecom provider Securus Technologies, which will cost the state approximately $9 million this fiscal year.
The Birth in Jails Media Project reveals that there is a lack of data on pregnant and postpartum people in jails, and that many births result in lawsuits due to negligence and lack of proper care, highlighting the need for improved reproductive healthcare access, better data, and staff training.
Mass incarceration is a complex issue that cannot be solved by simply tweaking the system, but rather by addressing the root causes of violence and poverty and reducing the number of people incarcerated.
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