HELP US END MASS INCARCERATION
The Prison Policy Initiative uses research, advocacy, and organizing to dismantle mass incarceration. We’ve been in this movement for 24 years, thanks to individual donors like you.
Can you help us sustain this work?
Thank you,
Peter Wagner, Executive Director Donate
Can you help us sustain this work?
Thank you,
Peter Wagner, Executive Director Donate
Articles by Tiana Herring
- What the Survey of Prison Inmates tells us about trans people in state prison
We look at the experiences of 29 incarcerated transgender people before and during their incarceration.
Mar 31, 2022 - COVID looks like it may stay. That means prison medical copays must go.
Forty states and the federal prison system continue to charge incarcerated people unaffordable copays for medical care.
Feb 1, 2022 - For the poorest people in prison, it’s a struggle to access even basic necessities
Our survey of all 50 states and the BOP reveals that prisons make it hard for people to qualify as indigent—and even those who do qualify receive limited resources.
Nov 18, 2021 - Show me the money: Tracking the companies that have a lock on sending funds to incarcerated people
We looked at all fifty state departments of corrections to figure out which companies hold the contracts to provide money-transfer services and what the fees are to use these services.
Nov 9, 2021 - Just over half of incarcerated people are vaccinated, despite being locked in COVID-19 epicenters
Most states did not prioritize incarcerated people in their vaccination plans. As a result, seven months since the first vaccines were distributed, just 55% of people in prison have been vaccinated, leaving them vulnerable to infection.
May 18, 2021 - Jail incarceration rates vary widely, but inexplicably, across U.S. cities
Cities jail people at rates that have little to no correlation to their violent crime rates, police budgets, or jail budgets.
May 4, 2021 - Parole boards approved fewer releases in 2020 than in 2019, despite the raging pandemic
Instead of releasing more people to the safety of their homes, parole boards in many states held fewer hearings and granted fewer approvals during the ongoing, deadly pandemic
Feb 3, 2021 - Prisons shouldn’t be charging medical co-pays – especially during a pandemic
Our December survey of medical co-pay policies shows that some states are reinstating medical co-pays as COVID-19 continues to spread in prisons.
Dec 21, 2020 - The research is clear: Solitary confinement causes long-lasting harm
At the International Symposium on Solitary Confinement, researchers and formerly incarcerated people made it clear that isolation causes severe and permanent damage.
Dec 8, 2020 - Releasing people pretrial doesn’t harm public safety
When these states, cities, and counties began releasing more people pretrial, there were no corresponding waves in crime.
Nov 17, 2020 - Since you asked: What role does drug enforcement play in the rising incarceration of women?
Women are being jailed at higher rates than ever. We explore whether drug arrests and substance abuse could be having an impact.
Nov 10, 2020 - Half of states fail to require mask use by correctional staff
States are not reducing their populations sufficiently to slow the spread of COVID-19, and our survey reveals that 20 states are not even requiring masks to be worn by staff and most are not requiring incarcerated people to wear them.
Aug 14, 2020 - How inflation makes your state’s criminal justice system harsher today than it was yesterday
The case for increasing the monetary level for felony theft.
Jun 10, 2020 - Tracking the statements of Departments of Corrections on the COVID-19 virus
We provide a spreadsheet showing what each state DOC has chosen to tell the public about its virus response plan.
Apr 8, 2020
Recommended Reading:
Advocacy Toolkit
Resources, tips, and best practices to help advocates working to end mass incarceration.
50 state incarceration profiles
All of our recent reports about prison/jail growth, racial disparities, and more, re-organized by state.
Mass Incarceration: The Whole Pie
The U.S. incarcerates nearly 2 million people. Where are they locked up and why? Read our report.
Events
- November 12-14, 2025:
Members of our Research team, Wendy Sawyer and Jacob Kang-Brown will be attending the American Society of Criminology annual meeting in Washington, D.C. from November 12 through the 14th. Please reach out if you’d like to set up a meeting.
Not near you?
Invite us to your city, college or organization.