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Nevada has an incarceration rate of 763 per 100,000 people (including prisons, jails, immigration detention, and juvenile justice facilities), meaning that it locks up a higher percentage of its people than many wealthy democracies do. Read on to learn more about who is incarcerated in Nevada and why.

Are you looking for information on what jails and prisons in Nevada are doing to stop COVID-19? See our regularly-updated coronavirus response page.

23,000 people from Nevada are behind bars

Rates of imprisonment have grown dramatically in the last 40 years

Also see these Nevada graphs:

• total numbers rather than rates.
• Women’s prisons: Incarceration Rates | Total Population
• Men’s prisons: Incarceration Rates | Total Population

Today, Nevada’s incarceration rates stand out internationally

In the U.S., incarceration extends beyond prisons and local jails to include other systems of confinement. The U.S. and state incarceration rates in this graph include people held by these other parts of the justice system, so they may be slightly higher than the commonly reported incarceration rates that only include prisons and jails. Details on the data are available in States of Incarceration: The Global Context. We also have a version of this graph focusing on the incarceration of women.

People of color are overrepresented in prisons and jails

See also our detailed graphs about Whites and Blacks in Nevada prisons and jails.

Nevada's criminal justice system is more than just its prisons and jails

Our other articles about Nevada

• We graded every state’s response to the coronavirus in prisons and jails. Nevada got an F
• How much do incarcerated people in Nevada earn for their work in prison?
• Nevada prisons charge a $8 copay to incarcerated people, putting health at risk
• We graded the parole release systems of all 50 states - Nevada gets a D
• Some jails in Nevada charge $12.00 or more for a 15-minute phone call
• Who's helping the 35,190 women released from Nevada correctional facilities each year?
• Importing Constituents: Prisoners and Political Clout in Nevada, by the Prison Policy Initiative and the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada
• More on prison gerrymandering in Nevada

Other resources

• Research on Nevada in our Research Library