Rural Growth — Rural Jail and Prison Growth — Galsworthy Criminal Justice Reform Program

Galsworthy Criminal Justice Reform Program

Rural Jail and Prison Growth

One of the most confounding recent trends in the criminal justice system is the disproportional increase in incarceration in rural areas. The main motivating factors of this trend have yet to be uncovered in their totality. This page seeks to explore the potential driving forces behind this pattern, along with highlighting the rural counties which are fighting this concerning, recent trend.

Posts in Rural Growth

How many people in your state go to local jails every year?

“Needlessly jailing vulnerable people isn’t only a waste of public money: Even short stints in jail can throw an individual’s life into disarray by forcing them to miss work, isolating them from loved ones, and cutting off any medications they are taking. Considering the enormous human costs of excessive incarceration, policymakers should use this new data to assess whether their jails are being used to protect the public or as a temporary – and ineffective – remedy for social problems.“

Prison Policy Initiative

September 18, 2019

Rural GrowthPhillip ReevesSeptember 18, 2019Prison Policy InitiativeComment

Addicted to Fines

“What we found is that in hundreds of jurisdictions throughout the country, fines are used to fund a significant portion of the budget. They account for more than 10 percent of general fund revenues in nearly 600 U.S. jurisdictions. In at least 284 of those governments, it’s more than 20 percent. Some other governments allocate the revenues outside the general fund. When fine and forfeiture revenues in all funds are considered, more than 720 localities reported annual revenues exceeding $100 for every adult resident.“

Governing Institute

August 31, 2019

Rural GrowthPhillip ReevesAugust 31, 2019Governing InstituteComment

How Prisons Inflate Rural Voters’ Power

“Because prisoners can’t vote in 48 of the 50 states, voters who live near prisons have more political clout per capita. And because prisons are typically built in sparsely populated regions, the count inflates rural voters’ power while diluting urban voters’ power, undermining the constitutional principle of “one person, one vote.”“

The New Republic

August 2, 2019

Rural GrowthPhillip ReevesAugust 2, 2019New RepublicComment

The Shocking Lack of Lawyers in Rural America

“While it is well known that public defenders’ caseloads are untenably high in jurisdictions nationwide, prompting lawsuits, the situation is particularly dire in largely rural states such as Louisiana. These so-called legal deserts may have only one or two defense attorneys, who are usually near retirement with no one to take their place.“

The Atlantic

July 18, 2019

Pre-trial Detention, Rural GrowthPhillip ReevesJuly 18, 2019The Atlantic, Public DefendersComment

In Pennsylvania, Detention as a First Option

Rural GrowthPhillip ReevesJune 14, 2019The Appeal, PennsylvaniaComment

Does our county really need a bigger jail? A guide for avoiding unnecessary jail expansion

“As jail populations have skyrocketed over the past three decades, jails around the country have become dangerously overcrowded. The reflexive response is often to start the long, expensive process of building a larger jail. However, this report provides a roadmap to easier, quicker, cheaper, and more just solutions to jail overcrowding. It is organized around a series of questions that local decisionmakers should be asking and then lays out a detailed briefing on best practices for reducing jail overcrowding.“

Prison Policy Initiative

May 1, 2019

Rural GrowthPhillip ReevesMay 1, 2019Prison Policy InitiativeComment

ALBANY NOTEBOOK: The crippling effects of closing a prison

“Fear is palpable in some regions of upstate New York as the Cuomo administration moves ahead with a plan to shut down as many as three prisons. Correctional institutions have long been a prime employer in the communities where they are located. And a sudden move by the state to shut down any of the upstate prisons would come as a kidney punch at a time when most counties are seeing their populations decrease steadily.“

Lockport Journal

April 21, 2019

Rural GrowthPhillip ReevesApril 21, 2019Lockport Journal, New YorkComment

Evers, The ‘People Not Prisons’ Candidate, Borrows Heavily For More Prison Beds

“The Democrat recommends nearly $259 million in bonding for seven major Department of Corrections building projects — a six-fold increase from his predecessor, Gov. Scott Walker’s last capital budget proposal, which recommended $41.68 million in DOC capital borrowing. The brunt of the Evers recommendations, $194 million, comes in the form of General Funds Supported Borrowing, repaid with General Fund Revenue, with $65 million in Existing/Residual bonding.“

MacIver Institute

March 19, 2019

Rural GrowthPhillip ReevesMarch 19, 2019MacIver Institute, Wisconsin, Tony EversComment

Fewer inmates will not mean a prison closure in 2019, Pa. officials say

“The state prison population has been driven to its lowest point in a decade for a few reasons. Officials attributed the drop to declining crime rates in addition to state legislation that helped non-violent inmates leave prison after serving minimum sentences, eased penalties on low-level offenders and expanded alternative punishment options.“

WITF Harrisburg

February 28, 2019

Rural GrowthPhillip ReevesFebruary 28, 2019WITF Harrisburg, PennsylvaniaComment

Rural jails drive up incarceration rates nationwide

“Where does Hancock County fit into all of this? Squarely in line with national trends. According to numbers provided by the Hancock County Sheriff’s Office, the number of inmates held in Hancock County Jail on a typical day increased 21 percent between 2008 and 2018. And upward of three-quarters of these inmates were being held pre-trial.“

The Ellsworth American

January 13, 2019

Rural GrowthPhillip ReevesJanuary 13, 2019Ellsworth American, Maine, Hancock CountyComment

Incarceration Data Reveals ‘Sharp Urban-Rural Divide’ Across US

‘The figures underline what many have already noted as a “rural jail crisis” of overcrowded and outdated facilities, much of it caused by the increase in mentally ill or substance-abuser populations driven by the nation’s opioid epidemic. The data also showed a sharp racial disparity in New York City, which has experienced some of the deepest and longest sustained reductions in crime, as well as jail populations.‘

The Crime Report

December 14, 2018

Rural GrowthPhillip ReevesDecember 14, 2018The Crime Report, Vera InstituteComment

Expanding our Knowledge on Local Incarceration Trends

“As Vera’s Incarceration Trends tool shows, it’s a problem that’s actually in all of our backyards—the place where the solutions also lie because it is city and county officials—such as police, prosecutors, and judges—who decide who and how to arrest, prosecute, and sentence. All people that are directly accountable to their local constituents. “

Vera Institute

December 13, 2018

Rural GrowthPhillip ReevesDecember 13, 2018Vera InstituteComment

Farm Aid for the Big House

“While the program has historically been used to fund public infrastructure, it was not until 1996 that the USDA decided to fund a jail: the Hale County jail in Greensboro, Alabama, for $2.2 million. Since then, according to various records of the transactions, the USDA has funded over $360 million in jail construction in rural areas. “

Vera Institute

October 20, 2018

Rural GrowthAnthony BradleyOctober 20, 2018Vera Institute, USDAComment

Rural Jails Grapple With Opioid Epidemic’s ‘Revolving Door’

“One of the biggest barriers to fighting the spreading opioid epidemic in rural northeast Washington state is the lack of providers authorized to prescribe drugs for treating opioid dependence. That’s why local jails need support for providing medication-assisted treatment, says a local doctor.“

The Crime Report

September 14, 2018

Rural GrowthPhillip ReevesSeptember 14, 2018The Crime ReportComment

In Rural Communities, Village Police Officers Face Impossible Job

“But in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta’s villages, local law enforcement’s job can seem impossible. Due to a series of fiscal decisions at the state level, rural communities are making do with less money to pay for basic services, including policing. As a result, Alaska’s Village Police Officers are expected to arrest their own friends and family without adequate support and for very little pay.“

KYUK News

September 13, 2018

Rural GrowthPhillip ReevesSeptember 13, 2018KYUK News, AlaskaComment

Nebraska prisons see some improvements, but 'serious' staffing problems persist, report says

“The report by the Legislature’s appointed watchdog for the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services said that while there’s been some improvement in programming for inmates and training of corrections employees, staffing problems have worsened at two key prisons, resulting in worn-out staff who are regularly required to work 12- to 16-hour shifts to fill vacant posts.“

Omaha World Herald

September 12, 2018

Rural GrowthPhillip ReevesSeptember 12, 2018Omaha World Herald, NebraskaComment

The Smart Justice 50-state Blueprint

"Each dot represents one of the 1,942,600 people in state prisons and jails in the U.S. The Smart Justice 50-State Blueprints show how each state can cut the number of people behind bars by half."

ACLU

September 5, 2018

Mass Incarceration, Rural GrowthPhillip ReevesSeptember 5, 2018ACLU

Life and Jail in Southern Colorado

"Against the high, mountainous landscapes of Colorado, communities both large and small are dealing with the burden of high and rising jail incarceration rates, and they are being presented with a choice: to build or not to build. In this context of worsening and crowded conditions, jail construction continues to move forward in Alamosa, and is being considered elsewhere. Yet the people of Pueblo have decided, twice now, that they do not want to invest their collective resources into more jail."

Vera Institute for Justice

July 31, 2018

Rural GrowthAnthony BradleyAugust 9, 2018Vera Institute, Colorado

In Rural America, Violent Crime Reaches Highest Level in a Decade

"In Iowa, the overall violent crime rate rose by 3 percent between 2006 and 2016, but shot up by 50 percent in communities with fewer than 10,000 residents. Violent crime rates have doubled in rural counties in West Virginia over the past couple of decades, while tripling in New Hampshire."

The Governing Institute

July 27, 2018

Rural GrowthAnthony BradleyJuly 28, 2018Violent Crime

In Texas, 3 Out of 4 County Jail Inmates Haven’t Been Convicted of a Crime

"In 1993, about half the nation’s overall jail population consisted of pretrial detainees; today, they represent 66 percent of jail inmates. Pretrial detention is even more lopsided in Texas. According to the report, nearly 74 percent of jail inmates statewide haven’t been convicted of a crime."

Texas Observer

July 25, 2018

Rural Growth, Pre-trial DetentionAnthony BradleyJuly 28, 2018Texas Observer, Texas