What’s New
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Amicus Brief: Court access needed to address inadequate medical care
Yesterday, the Prison Policy Initiative, in partnership with the Roderick and Solange MacArthur Justice Center, filed….
October 1: Prison Policy Initiative Blog
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A reporter’s guide to reporting guides around incarceration
Resources for honing reporting skills, working with incarcerated writers, and framing your coverage well.
October 1: Prison Policy Initiative Blog
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Webinar: Exercising our right to know: Making effective public records requests
Every state and the federal government has transparency laws on the books that allow the public to access a huge range….
September 28: Prison Policy Initiative Blog
Featured report
Cut-rate care: The systemic problems shaping ‘healthcare’ behind bars
In correctional healthcare systems, care is secondary to controlling costs and avoiding lawsuits — a problem plaguing both private and public healthcare delivery. What will it take to get people the care they need? In this report, we examine how healthcare in prisons and jails has gotten so bad and encourage governments to remove corrections agencies from the healthcare process altogether.
Mass incarceration, state by state
Learn about the national prison crisis and how we can begin to turn the tide on mass incarceration. Then, drill down to your state. Be sure to also check out our pages focused on D.C., and the incarceration of Native people.
Select your state:
If our work is new to you, you might want to check out our 2025-2026 annual report.
Recommended Reading:
The unmet health needs of people in prison
States fall far short of their duty to meet the health needs of incarcerated people.
All profit, no risk
The bail industry exploits cracks and loopholes in the legal system to avoid accountability, while growing its profits.
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.
Prison Gerrymandering Project
We are leading the movement to protect our democracy from the Census Bureau's prison miscount.
Events
- October 27, 2026:
On October 27, 2026 at 1:30 p.m. EST, join the Prison Policy Initiative for a webinar focused on making public records requests. We’ll cover the basics of making a request and provide tips and tricks we’ve learned over decades of sending requests to jails, prisons, and other agencies that can make your requests more effective.
Register here
Not near you?
Invite us to your city, college or organization.