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41,000 people from Wisconsin are behind bars today

Rates of imprisonment have grown dramatically in the last 40 years

Also see these Wisconsin graphs:

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

Today, Wisconsin’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, Blacks, and American Indians/Native Americans in Wisconsin prisons and jails.

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

Our other articles about Wisconsin

• Ending prison gerrymandering in Wisconsin campaign and resource page
• Prison-based gerrymandering's striking resemblance to the infamous three-fifths clause, by Leah Sakala, September 8, 2011
• Wisconsin sees dramatic prison-based gerrymandering in new state, county, city districts, by Peter Wagner, July 18, 2011
• Importing Constituents: Prisoners and Political Clout in Wisconsin, by John Hejduk and Peter Wagner, March 2008
• Fuzzy Math: Is the Census Bureau creating unfair politics in Wisconsin?, by Evan Solochek, Milwaukee Magazine March 2008. (Winner: Best Single Feature Story Under 30,” 2008 Excellence in Journalism, Milwaukee Press Club)

Other resources

• Research on Wisconsin in our Research Library