What’s New
-
New report, The Company Store, questions fairness and purpose of prison commissaries In a first-of-its-kind data analysis, we explore the economics of prison commissaries in three states.
May 24: Prison Policy Initiative Blog
-
Orleans Criminal District Court, Magistrate Court, & Municipal Court: 2017 Review by Court Watch NOLA
May 23: Research Clearinghouse: Trials
-
Using Behavioral Science to Improve Criminal Justice Outcomes: Preventing Failures to Appear in Court by ideas42 and the University of Chicago Crime Lab
May 22: Research Clearinghouse: General
-
Life imprisonment: A Policy Briefing by Penal Reform International and University of Nottingham
May 21: Research Clearinghouse: International Incarceration Comparisons
-
New report from Essie Justice shows women with incarcerated loved ones are traumatized by marginalization Mass incarceration intensifies the financial and social burdens that already fall too hard on women.
May 14: Prison Policy Initiative Blog
-
Jail will separate 2.3 million mothers from their children this year 80% of the women jailed each year are mothers. We’re inflicting profound damage not only on them, but their children as well.
May 13: Prison Policy Initiative Blog
-
Your location data: free to anyone with a Securus contract For nearly a year, the FCC knew about Securus’s cellphone tracking and turned a blind eye.
May 11: Prison Policy Initiative Blog
-
Stark racial disparities in murder rates persist, even as overall murder rate declines Homicide rates for Black men, Black women and Native women are consistently higher than for other racial and ethnic groups.
-
Actual violent crime has nothing to do with our fear of violent crime Comparing violent crime rates to public opinion data shows that there’s a long-standing disconnect between perception and reality.
Featured report
Following the Money of Mass Incarceration
In a first-of-its-kind report, the Prison Policy Initiative aggregates economic data to offer a big picture view of who pays for and who benefits from mass incarceration.
Unpacking mass incarceration
Learn about the national prison crisis and how we can begin to turn the tide on mass incarceration. Then, drill down to your state.
If our work is new to you, you might want to check out our 2016-2017 annual report.
Recommended Reading:
Prison Gerrymandering Project
We are leading the movement to protect our democracy from the Census Bureau's prison miscount.
$1/minute to talk to Dad?
The federal government must act to protect families from the predatory prison telephone industry.
Compare your state's use of the prison to the world at large
Criminal justice policy in every region of the United States is out of step with the rest of the world.
Just like Skype?!
Short videos use humor to challenge the claim that video visitation is 'just like Skype.'
Events
Nothing scheduled right now. Invite us to to your city, college or organization.