Guides
- Is Drunk Driving a Felony, What’s the Punishment, and How Many People Die From It?
- What is Domestic Abuse vs. Domestic Violence, and What Are the Differences?
- What is a Roommate Agreement, What Are the Benefits, and What Should You Include?
- What is Public Indecency, and What Are the Laws, Charges, and Penalties?
- What Are the Pocket Knives Laws, Legal Lengths, and Rules for Illegal Types?
- What is Aiding and Abetting and What Are the Punishments and Charges for It?
- Where Can You Be Naked in Public and Celebrate National Nude Day?
- What Is Child Custody and How to File for It Without an Attorney
- What to Do if Someone Has Stolen Your Driver's License Number and How to Replace It
- What is Bail Jumping: Punishments and Jail Time for Failure to Appear in Court
- Dating a Minor: Is It Legal and What Is the Age of Consent?
- How to Conduct a Dating Profile Search and Find Someone on a Dating Site
- What is Personally Identifiable Information and Why is PII Protection Important?
- What Is a No-Fault Divorce, When Did It Start and Why It Can Be Bad
- The Differences Between Moving And Non-Moving Violations
- What are Aggravating and Mitigating Factors in a Criminal Case?
- What Is ADR: Process, Meaning And Examples
- Definition and Differences Between Conspiracy Theories and Conspiracy Charge
- How to Get a Divorce: Process, Stages and Required Papers
- Embezzlement as a White-Collar Crime: Definition, Meaning, and Examples
- What Is a Car Registration, How Much Does It Cost and How to Get One?
- Types of Email Archiving and How to Retrieve Them
- How to Protect Your Car From Theft or Report It Stolen
- How to Organize and Protect Your Personal Documents?
- How to Find and Reconnect With Old Friends: Proven Techniques That Work
- Business Records: Types, Examples and How to Search
- Right to Privacy: Is It Protected By The Constitution?
- Ownership and Tenancy in Severalty in Real Estate
- What Different Types of Marriages Are There?
- Should You Believe in Age Gap Rules Calculation
- What Is Driver’s License Status and How To Check It
- What Is Civil Marriage: Pros and Cons
- Top 5 Most Famous Serial Killers Of All Times
- What Was The Subprime Mortgage Crisis
- Most Famous Murder Cases Throughout History
- The Dynamics and Consequences of Ghosting Someone in Personal Relationships
- What is Incarceration? Definition, Process, and Impact
- What is A Mortgage-Backed Security (MBS)
- Is AI Dangerous? Unveiling the Risks of Artificial Intelligence
- What is a VPN?
- 7 Cybersecurity Threats to Look Out For
- What Are Debtors and Creditors, and What Are Their Legal Rights and Differences?
- What Are the Types of Business Ownership and How Can You Transfer It?
- What is a Tax Lien, How Does It Work & How to Stop One?
- What is the Difference Between Civil and Criminal Cases?
- 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 and Is It Really Effective?
- 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
- How to Submit a Data Removal Request and Hide Results About You on Google Search
- 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, What Does It Consist of and How to Call For It?
- What Is a Temporary Restraining Order and How Do You Get One?
- What is Smishing And How to Prevent 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?
- How to Avoid Common Venmo Scams and Protect Yourself From Scammers
- 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, How It Affects Insurance and How to Keep It Clean
- 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
- What Are the Different Types of Bankruptcies and Which One Is Right for You?
- 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
- How to Search and Find Family Members and Relatives Who Are Long Lost?
- Car History Guide, Benefits, Importance
- Am I Dating a Stalker?
- How to Find out if Your Partner is Cheating
- What Are the Types and Tools of Packet Sniffing Attacks?
- 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: Why They Are Important and How to Get One
- 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
- What Is an Outstanding Warrant and How Can You Check if You Have One?
- 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 a VIN Number and What It Tells You
- 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
- How Many Different Types of State License Plates Are There and Which Is the Standard One?
- Effects of Cyberbullying: Complete Guide for Parents
- What is the DPPA?
- Is Petty Theft a Misdemeanor and What Are the Consequences?
- What is a Life Sentence? Life in Prison
- Find out How to Check if Someone Has a Warrant Online for Free
- Is a Marriage Certificate the Same as a Marriage License and What Are the Differences?
- The Ten Most Popular Celebrity Mugshots
- How to Find Out if Someone is Married?
- How to Stop Phone Number 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?
- What is the Punishment for 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?
- Can You Track Someone's Location with Just a Phone Number?
- What Is a Restricted Phone Call and How to Block The Number?
- Who is the Most Dangerous Prisoner in the World?
- Poshmark Scams: How to Prevent and Report Them
- What to Do When Someone Is Missing: Practical Steps on How to Find a Missing Person
- How to Send Money to an Inmate in a Prison or Jail
- DUI vs DWI: The Difference Between DUI and DWI
- How Long After Buying a Car Do You Need to Register it?
- How to Find Someone's Address?
- What is an Ignition Interlock Device?
- What Is Situational Crime Prevention?
- 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?
- Protecting 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: Statistics 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
- Traits of Sociopaths, Are They Dangerous and How to Deal With Them?
- Who Are Your Neighbors and How to Find Out About Them
- Learn How to Find Your Birth Parents
- The Importance of Public Records in Law
- What's The Difference Between a Jail And a 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
Most Famous Prisons in the US
The majority of those incarcerated in the United States are in state prisons. About 1.3 million Americans are locked up for sentences that are longer than one year. Of them, over 700,000 are imprisoned for violent crimes, 235,000 for property crimes, and 200,000 for drug crimes. To find out who is housed in prisons in your state, search first for a statewide inmate lookup tool, or check the individual prison website. Most searches function using a first and last name, while others may need more information.
Jails are operated on a local level, whether by counties or municipalities, holding individuals accused of crimes and denied bail or those who have been found guilty of a crime and are serving a sentence of a year or less. Local jails currently hold about 600,000 Americans, the vast majority of whom have not been convicted but are either awaiting trial or cannot pay court-related fines and fees. Most have a searchable database of inmates but the population changes
Facilities are segregated by sex and age, with most (but not all) of those under age 18 in juvenile facilities. State laws vary but juveniles accused of very serious crimes may be tried as adults when they’re as young as ages 14 or 15. There are about 1,000 juveniles currently in adult jails and prisons across the country.
Like it or not, prisons are part of our national identity and a continued source of fascination. Among the legendary lockups is Alcatraz Federal Prison in San Francisco Bay, one that spawned dozens of creative stories and held some of the country’s infamous prisoners like Chicago gangster Al Capone, George “Machine Gun” Kelly, and Robert “Birdman” Stroud. The island started as a military prison but served as a federal prison from 1936-1964. It is now a tourist destination.
Federal Prisons in the US
Doing a federal inmate search is easier than finding a state prison inmate because there’s a unified search tool from Bop.gov.
Drug charges are the reason that 82,000 of the 121,000 inmates are in federal prisons, of which there are at least 21 facilities in the U.S. The Department of Justice’s Federal Bureau of Prisons is responsible for federal prisons and prison camps. Those who are sent to federal prison have been convicted of violating federal laws, often those involving crossing state lines, use of communications facilities to commit a crime, or racketeering; also those apprehended by federal agencies including Immigration and Customs Enforcement are charged with federal crimes. Women are often held in separate quarters in the same facilities.
US Supermax Prisons
Federal correctional institutions range from low-security for white-collar criminals and nonviolent individuals to a Supermax prison for those most dangerous to others.
How Many Supermax Prisons are in the US?
The only facility that is completely dedicated to the sort of high security, high-punishment of a “supermax” is located in Florence, Colorado. It called ADMAX USP and it houses individuals like the Mexican drug kingpin Joaquin ‘El Chapo’ Guzman, who had escaped from prison in Mexico. Among the other inmates held in near-solitary circumstances here are Terry Nichols, who partnered with Timothy McVeigh to bomb the Oklahoma City federal building in 1995, killing 168; two of the 1993 World Trade Center bombers; a former FBI agent who sold secrets to the USSR, and the “Unabomber,” Ted Kaczynski.
Where Do the Worst Criminals Go?
1. California’s San Quentin and Soledad Prisons
California’s San Quentin and Soledad prisons are notorious breeding grounds for gangs, including seeding the dangerously violent MS-13 and others. Here, gang affiliations, rewards and retributions flow from prison to street and back, often with the assistance of guards who are bribed.
2. Singsing Prison
New York’s Singsing prison earned its reputation because the original cellblock, used for more than 100 years, was built in the 1830s. It held the state’s electric chair and was the site of over 600 executions before the state outlawed the practice in 1972.
3. Maximum-Security Prison in Louisiana
Conditions were so poor at Louisiana’s maximum-security state prison at Angola that a group of prisoners cut their own achilles tendons to protest while others wrote articles and books about the place. Leased prison labor and political patronage were two exacerbating factors in the situation, as was entrenched racism.
4. Julia Tutwiler Prison
Julia Tutwiler Prison in Alabama, a women-only facility, is named for a reformer but was at the center of a report on miserable conditions in recent years. The report detailed the severe sexual abuse of prisoners and history of overcrowding and unconstitutional treatment.
5. Pelican Bay Prison
Pelican Bay is a state-run supermax high-security prison in California where the state’s worst and most violent prisoners are sent. Solitary confinement is a common practice there, and state officials are famously silent on their practices.
Island for Prisoners
Rikers Island, the primary holding facility for New York City law enforcement authorities, was opened in 1932 and hosts as many as 10,000 inmates daily. The complex consists of 10 jails for those who are serving sentences of one year or less, those being held pending trial, and those who have been denied bail, among others. Rikers Island has been notorious for violations of inmates’ rights, including those of Kalief Browder, a Bronx resident who was held for three years on charges of stealing a backpack because he could not make bail. Browder later committed suicide. A plane crash here in 1957 ended in sentence reductions for the prisoners who helped rescue those injured by the accident. Within this turbulent environment, the influential figures within the prison hierarchy often utilize their resources to send money to inmates, further entrenching their control and influence within the facility.
Cook County Jail in Lawndale, near Chicago, Illinois, holds about 6,500 prisoners and it's (former) women’s ward is the setting for the hit musical Chicago. Due to the city’s reputation for gangsters and crime, the jail where electrocutions once took place is similarly notorious. In 2008 a report found many violations of inmates’ Eighth Amendment rights to freedom from harm from staff and fellow inmates as well as poor medical care and rodent infestation.
History of the American Prison System
Prisons were in use in England prior to colonization of the North American continent, often in the form of dungeons at the local castle. Indeed, many of the earliest residents of North America were prisoners sent to fill out the King’s colonies or as indentured servants. Spain had a prison in Florida in the 1500s.
Most Early American forms of punishment for minor crimes against the community did not use incarceration but were generally a form of temporary humiliation, such as using public stockades where a prisoner was held for a specified period of time. Prisons, like the jail built on Cape Cod in 1690, were an outgrowth of the jailhouse that was used to hold prisoners before trials and between judgment and serving a sentence. About 100 years later, local “workhouses” were places where individuals could work off sentences.
While Boston’s pre-1800 British fort, on Castle Island in Boston Harbor was used as a prison as early as 1785, Pennsylvania is acknowledged as the first state to construct purpose-built prisons, and by 1800, eleven states had prisons.
Two competing philosophies of incarceration developed in the early 1800s: the Auburn System, based in New York, put prisoners to work with others during the day and held them individually in cells at night, while Pennsylvania’s system was based on complete isolation. After the Civil War, attempts at humane punishment and rehabilitation were largely abandoned as prisoners became subjected to physical restraints and near-torture as a means of control, including an early form of waterboarding.
The use of chain gangs and leasing prisoners for outside work began in the Reconstruction era, mostly in Southern states, in many cases to rebuild the finances of the state. Thus states began to impose longer sentences and to round up more “vagrants” to make more money. Business owners supported the movement because it ensured inexpensive labor for them. Meanwhile, Northern prisons often became manufacturing centers for similar reasons, as prisoners made pennies on the goods they produced.
In the 1980s and 1990s drug usage and related crimes prompted legislators to introduce tougher sentences, including the “three strikes” law that caused the prison population to boom and created a demand for more prisons to be constructed. As of 2019 legislation to reduce such harsh punishment was passed, allowing for a decline in the peak imprisonment period.