Guides
- Property Ownership Types You Should Know About
- Community Safety Initiatives: How to Make Your Neighborhood Safer
- What is a Lien and How Lien Priority Works?
- Campus Safety 101: Essential Tips for a Secure College Life
- How to Know If Someone Is Divorced?
- What are the CCPA and CPRA?
- How to Get Over a Breakup?
- U.S. Violent Crime Definition & Statistics
- The 5 Steps You Should Know When Adopting a Child
- What Is Criminal Profiling?
- A Full Guide on Reasonable Suspicion vs Probable Cause
- What Is Email Encryption & How to Encrypt an Email?
- What is a White Collar Crime? A Full Guide
- Rental Scams: How Do They Work & How to Catch Scammers?
- A Complete Guide on Parole vs Probation
- 5 Steps to Remove Personal Information from Google
- A Full Guide on House Arrests
- A Complete Guide on Marriage and Civil Union
- How to Safeguard Yourself and Deal with Marriage Debt
- What is Eyewitness Testimony?
- A Full Guide on Gentrification: Why is it a Problem?
- 8 Most Dangerous Twitter Scams and How to Avoid Them
- Pretexting Attacks: Common Types and How to Deal with Them
- How Do Zelle Scams Work and Things to Look Out For
- What Is Business Email Compromise, How to Defend Against It?
- What is a Wellness Check?
- How To Get a Temporary Restraining Order?
- What Is Smishing Attack & How to Avoid It?
- Spam Emails: Types and Ways to Block Them
- Email Masking & Masked Email Addresses
- Spot a Fake QR Code & Avoid Getting Scammed
- Common NFT Scams to Look Out For & Ways to Avoid the Fake Ones
- What to Do If You Witness a Crime?
- What Is Skip Tracing and How Does It Work?
- Common Venmo Scams to Look Out For and How to Avoid Them
- Can You Get Child Custody If You Have a Criminal Record?
- Common Amazon Scams and Ways on How to Avoid Them
- How to Find Liens on a Property?
- Multiple Bankruptcies: How Often You Can File One?
- How to Adopt a Child in the US?
- I Lost My Birth Certificate. What Should I Do?
- Warning Signs of Job Scams and How to Protect Yourself
- What Is a Ban the Box Law?
- What is Expungement?
- How to Transfer Property After Death Without Will
- What Is a Police Blotter?
- How to Appeal a Parking Ticket
- What Is a Clean Driving Record?
- What is Title Washing?
- What is Extortion?
- How To Run a Motorcycle Title Search
- What Is a Digital Footprint?
- What is Anti Money Laundering (AML)?
- Guide on How to Get a Death Certificate
- What is the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)?
- What is Multi Factor Authentication?
- What is a Citizen's Arrest?
- How to Know that You’re in an Obsessive Relationship
- Guide to Online Survey Scams
- 13 Different Types of Police Officers
- Full Guide on Work-from-Home Scams
- Is Private Browsing Really Private?
- Different Types of Felony Classes & Charges
- What is Juice Jacking?
- What are Romance Scams?
- Traffic Offenses and Violations
- What is Doxing and How to Prevent it?
- What are Spam Text Messages
- The U.S. Death Penalty: History and Modern Usage
- A Guide to Different Types of Bankruptcies
- Common eBay Scams to be Aware of
- What Happens When You are Booked in Jail?
- What Information Can You Get From A License Plate
- Different Types of Assets
- 8 Tips to Help You Find Family Members
- Car History Guide, Benefits, Importance
- Am I Dating a Stalker?
- How to Find out if Your Partner is Cheating
- What Is A Packet Sniffing Attack
- Intellectual Property Law and Rights
- Cyberstalking And Its Dangers
- A Guide to Phishing Scams
- What is Organized Crime?
- I’ve Lost My Driver’s License: What Should I Do?
- Misdemeanor Charges: Types, Classes, and Penalties
- A Complete Guide On Catfishing
- Vanity Phone Numbers: A Complete Guide
- What Happens When You Get Arrested
- Guide to Find Information About a Person Online
- How To Find And Claim Unclaimed Money
- What Happens if You Violate Probation
- Guide on How to Remove a Mugshot from the Internet
- How to Stay Safe on Public WiFi
- How to Deal with an Outstanding Warrant
- Different Types of Car Insurance
- What Is Cyptojacking?
- What Is Email Security?
- What Is the Deep Web and What Can Be Found There?
- What Happens When You Declare Bankruptcy
- How Divorce Settlements are Calculated
- What are Common Methods of Social Engineering
- What is the Difference Between a General Lien and a Specific Lien?
- How to Detect Odometer Rollback
- Different Types of Probation
- Finding forgotten life insurance policies
- What is Bearer Bond and Why the US Banned it
- Everything you need to know about small claims court
- Moral Turpitude: Definition, Examples, and Much More!
- Misdemeanor vs Felony
- How To Read VIN Number
- How to Find Out Who Hacked Your Cell Phone
- How Long Does a Misdemeanor Stay On Your Criminal Record?
- The Paypal Phishing Scam You Should Care to Avoid
- License Plates Types: USA Guide
- Effects of Cyberbullying: Complete Guide for Parents
- What is the DPPA?
- Petty Theft: Definition and Consequences
- What is a Life Sentence?
- How to Find Out if Someone Has a Warrant?
- Marriage License vs Certificate: Everything You Need to Know
- The Ten Most Popular Celebrity Mugshots
- How to Find Out if Someone is Married?
- How to Stop Phone Spoofing?
- How To Avoid Probate
- Dealing with abandoned vehicles in your neighborhood
- How to Find Someone's Cell Phone Number by Their Name
- Who Are the Worst Drivers in America?
- How To Find Unclaimed Money From Deceased Relatives
- What is a Digital License Plate?
- How to Find out if Someone Died?
- Murder vs Manslaughter: The Differences and Definitions
- How to Hire a Private Investigator?
- What Is a Number Neighbor?
- How to Find Out if Someone was Arrested
- How to Find Someone's Birthday?
- What is a Car Title
- How to Obtain a Police Report and Court Records?
- Filing a false police report
- Prison Valley: Look inside Prison Town
- How to Get Custody of a Child Without Going to Court?
- How to Find Someone’s Social Media Profiles?
- What to Do if Your Phone Is Tapped?
- What Is a Deed in Real Estate?
- Where Was The First US Federal Penitentiary Established?
- How to Find Someone's Location Using Their Cell Phone Number?
- What Is a Restricted Call?
- Who is the Most Dangerous Prisoner in the World?
- Poshmark Scams: How to Prevent and Report Them
- How to Find a Missing Person?
- How to Send Money to a Federal Inmate?
- DUI vs DWI: What're The Differences
- How Long After Buying a Car Do You Need to Register it?
- How to Find out Where Someone Lives?
- What Happens If You Get Caught Driving a Car Without Interlock
- Situational Crime Prevention: Theory, Techniques and Examples
- How Can I Find Out Who Called Me for Free?
- Gun Free Zone Statistics and Facts
- Online Threats and Digital Security: Trends, Types and Most Common Examples
- Cold Cases: Best Practices For Police Officers and Investigators
- Court Order: Definition, Types and Examples
- What Does a Fingerprint Background Report Show?
- How to Check Your Criminal Record?
- What is Tort Law?
- How to Calculate Child Support
- Property Rights: Definition, and Characteristics
- 12 Common Reasons for Public Records Request
- What is Antitrust Law?
- Virginia Gun Confiscation Law
- Ways to Know Who Owns a House
- Neighborhood Watch Program
- How to Perform a Mugshot Search?
- Crime Mapping
- Safest Colleges in Florida
- Veterans Guide to Cars and Driving
- U.S. Correctional System: Structure, Incarceration and Facts
- License Plate Laws in the US
- How to Find Out If Someone Is in Jail?
- Email Hacking: Laws, Penalties and Protection
- Romeo and Juliet Laws
- Holiday Safety for Home and Family
- Differences between Criminal and Arrest Records
- Public Records and Property History: What is Public Information and What Isn’t
- How to Look up Immigration Inmates?
- Famous Prisons in the USA
- How to Find Out Who Owns a Vehicle Using Reverse Lookup Tools
- How to Search for Your Family Tree?
- The Federal Judicial Center
- Mass Incarceration in the USA
- What is COPPA (Children's Online Privacy Protection Act)?
- Data Safety After The Capital One Breach
- Scholarships Guide for Students
- Complete Guide to Student Safety
- What Is a Vehicle Identification Number?
- Determining Divorce: 5 Types of Divorce You Must Know
- Sex Offenders: Complete Guide to be Protected
- New Privacy Laws and Public Records
- Motor Vehicle Registration in the US
- Digital Token Age: Security Laws and Regulations
- Facial Recognition Technology and Legal Restrictions
- What Shows up in a Background Report
- What is Repossession of a Car?
- How to Protect Yourself from Phone Scams
- Human Rights in the Prison
- What are Business Competition Laws?
- What is a Hate Crime?
- Starting a Business and Business Licenses
- General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Guidance
- Criminal Justice Reform
- Tax Reform Impact and Changes To Know
- Self-Driving Cars: Laws and Regulations
- White-Collar Crime: Statistics and Facts
- Have You Been Arrested? Cases You'll Need a Lawyer
- How to Get a Driver's License in the US
- Car Theft in the US: Prevention and Facts
- Identity Theft Passport Program
- Changing your Name after Marriage: What You Need to Know
- Finding the Perfect Roommate: Dos and Donts
- What to Do in a Car Accident?
- Property Crimes: How to Burglar Proof Your Home
- Consumer Laws in the US: What Do They Mean for a Customer and a Business Owner
- Child Trafficking: The Scope, Understanding, and Prevention
- Business Assets: A Guide to the Financial Health of your Business
- Guide To The College Application: How, When and Where to Apply
- Which States Have “Stand Your Ground” Laws?
- Adolescent Depression Symptoms and Causes
- Things to Know About the U.S. State Department Travel Advisory System
- Inheritance in the US: With & Without a Will
- Online Dating Safety Guide for Men and Women
- Sexual Abuse in the U.S.: Laws and Statistics
- Supporting Children After Divorce: Child Custody Options
- Halloween Horrors Come to Life: Holidays Crimes in the U.S.
- Charity Scams in the U.S.: Be Aware and Protected
- Webcam Hacking & Spying in the US
- Freedom of Religion in the U.S.
- Senior Financial Scams: How are the Elderly Targeted and How to Avoid It
- Catcalling: Is it illegal? How to Deal With It
- A Complete Guide To Insurance Fraud: Common Types and Prevention
- Sextortion: What to Do if You Became a Victim of Blackmailing
- Concealed Carry: How to Protect Yourself on Campus
- Debt Collection Laws | Fair Debt Collection Act: What You Need To Know
- How Much Is My House Worth? Ultimate Guide to Home Buying and Selling
- What are the Traits of a Sociopath?
- Do You Know Who Your Neighbors Are?
- Learn How to Find Your Birth Parents
- The Importance of Public Records in Law
- Do You Know What's the Difference Between Jail and Prison?
- Homeowner's Insurance Coverage & Common Claims
- The Disturbing Facts of Gun Violence in America
- How to Use Public Records in Marketing
- Best & Worst Cities for Driving
- LGBT Bullying
- A Parent's Guide to Keeping Your Child Drug-Free
- What You Need to Know When Buying or Selling a Used Car?
- Guide to Filing for Bankruptcy
- Making Your DMV Experience Fast And Easy
- How to Appeal the Court's Decision
- How to Fight a Traffic Ticket?
- How to Prepare For an Active Shooter Incident
- How to Protect Yourself Against Cyber Attacks
- How to Report a Crime?
- Keeping Your Neighborhood Safe For Your Family
- School Safety and Security Standards
- 50 Things to Know When Filing for Divorce
- Tips for Back-to-School Safety and Security
- A User's Guide to Warrants
- What to Do When You Are Stopped By the Police
Criminal Justice Reform: All You Need to Know
In the last eight years, criminal justice reform has been recognized as an important part of saving tax money and ending cycles of poverty and broken families in the U.S. The toughest obstacle to making changes is how deeply entrenched the prison system is in state economies.
The most recent list of states with high incarceration rates shows that at least 30 U.S. states incarcerate more people per 100,000 population than most countries in the world (El Salvador is the next-highest with 614 per 100,000):
- Oklahoma recently unseated Louisiana for the top slot with its incarceration rate of more than 1,070 per 100,000 population;
- Louisiana and Mississippi each have an incarceration rate of more than 1,025 per 100,000;
- Georgia, Alabama, and Arkansas each incarcerate about 900 per 100,000; and
- Texas and eight other states incarcerate 800 or more per 100,000 population.
Steps to Reform
Many states have made progress toward prison reform, most often when faced with the financial toll of supporting bursting prisons (and fighting lawsuits about living conditions within them). Alabama, charged with inhumane conditions, corruption, violence, and drugs in its prisons, is moving slowly to reform, promising only to address a portion of the issue through hiring 500 new guards.
Oklahoma recently passed several significant reforms despite having the highest rate of incarceration in the country. There, mandatory minimum sentences are reduced for some offenses, drug-related crimes won’t be punished as severely, expungement of records will be easier for nonviolent offenders, and allows modification of sentences after 10 years for those serving life in prison.
Even Massachusetts, with one of the lowest incarceration rates, has enacted some reforms: the state will include in criminal offender’s records only that information that was pursued after arraignment (not charges that were dismissed).
Florida is considering reforms that include keeping inmates in prisons within 300 miles of their homes, reducing sentences for nonviolent drug offenses, teaching job skills in prison, and imposing fewer penalties for small probation violations.
Reforms in Texas have eliminated eight prisons and reduced the population by 30,000 in about 10 years. Some of its reform measures under consideration include releasing female inmates from shackles during childbirth, keeping prisoners within 500 miles of family, and allowing compassionate leave for inmates who are elderly or terminally ill.
Missouri’s elected officials are considering changes that center on aspects of the system taking money unnecessarily from those who are incarcerated, including clamping down on forfeitures and requiring prisoners to pay a bevy of fees – or stay in prison longer to compensate.
Louisiana calculates its savings in the first few years of reform around $12 million, which the state will plow back into more reform measures, including additional support for victims, re-entry programs that reduce recidivism, and releasing nonviolent offenders earlier.
Arizona, where more than 40,000 are held in prisons, did not pass measures to revamp the practical definition of repeat offender, allow judges more discretion in sentencing, and allow certain categories of offenders an opportunity to expunge their records. These measures died before being signed into law in 2019.
That's why it's very important to protect yourself and people you love through Arizona inmate search.
Federal Reforms Through Sentencing
In December 2018 the president signed the First Step Act into law, which reduces the toughest penalties for those convicted of federal drug crimes, provides judges with more leeway to sentence those under the “three strikes” rules, provides for sentence reductions for good behavior and completing classes, and allows some life sentences to be reduced to 25 years. These reforms only affect federal prisoners, however, which is around 200,000 individuals, a fraction of the total prison population.
Recent efforts to reduce the number of incarcerations involved a commission convened by President Obama in 2014. That group’s recommendations included:
- restructuring $3.8 billion in federal grants to states that apparently encouraged high rates of imprisonment rather than alternative means of policing and discouraging crime;
- getting more federal agencies and subcontractors to use the “ban the box” principles that encourage the hiring of ex-felons by putting their criminal record in perspective during the job interview process; and,
- using Presidential power to commute the sentences of low-level drug offenders.
This effort followed the 2010 Fair Sentencing Act that reduced the differences in sentencing between possession of powdered cocaine and crack cocaine, which was seen as exaggerated and a race-based sentence because it disproportionately affected poor urban minorities.
The Scope of the Issue
There are 2.3 million people held in U.S. state jails, federal prisons, county juvenile detention, federal immigration centers, and other facilities, for more than 725 per 100,000 population, the highest rate of incarceration in the world. About a half-million of those people are being held for trial, and 1 in 5 is charged with or convicted for drug-related offenses. Another 4.25 million people are on parole or probation. There has been a 6 percent reduction in the prison population since it peaked around 2010.
These numbers have ballooned since 1984, when there were fewer than 500,000 people incarcerated, according to a group that studies criminal justice. Much of the reason for the steep increase in prisoners is the war on drugs that started in the early 1980s. First Lady Nancy Reagan made “Just say no to drugs” her signature slogan, and three strikes laws (repeat offenders) were instituted to take many drug users and dealers off the street for good.
People of color are much more likely to be incarcerated in the U.S. than whites. Although African Americans make up 12 percent of the general population but about a third of the prison population. Latinos are similarly represented, making up 16 percent of the population but over 24 percent of prison populations.
About one-third of all adults in the U.S. has a criminal record, which is defined by the F.B.I. as an arrest or conviction on a felony charge.