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Appendix Table 2. Jail trends by state, 2019

Alaska, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Rhode Island, and Vermont have combined prison and jail systems and therefore do not report jail data to the Bureau of Justice Statistics. For detailed sourcing and methodology, see our April 2024 publication, New data and visualizations spotlight states' reliance on excessive jailing.
State Jail incarceration rate (adjusted), 2019 Jail growth (adjusted), 1983‑2019 Percent unconvicted, 2019 Percent held for state and federal authorities, 2019 Percent held for state prisons, 2019 Percent held for immigration authorities, 2019 Percent held for U.S. Marshals Service, 2019 Percent held for other agencies, 2019
Alabama 252 1.6 74% 22% 16% 0.5% 5.5% 22%
Arizona 176 0.9 80% 2.3% 0% 0.2% 1.6% 2.4%
Arkansas 225 2.2 67% 26% 18% 0.8% 7.0% 26%
California 181 0.2 59% 5.9% 2.1% 0.6% 2.4% 5.9%
Colorado 219 2.0 60% 3.8% 1.8% 0.4% 1.3% 3.8%
District of Columbia 195 -0.4 80% 26% 0% 0% 25% 26%
Florida 248 0.8 58% 7.3% 1.9% 2.6% 2.4% 7.3%
Georgia 349 0.9 59% 16% 11% 3.7% 1.4% 16%
Idaho 169 1.6 48% 30% 23% 0.6% 4.4% 30%
Illinois 116 0.4 77% 10% 0% 4.0% 6.1% 10%
Indiana 292 3.2 65% 4.6% 1.5% 0.5% 2.5% 4.7%
Iowa 138 3.5 74% 15% 0% 2.4% 12% 15%
Kansas 229 3.3 68% 18% 2.6% 2.3% 12% 18%
Kentucky 299 2.1 44% 49% 41% 0.7% 5.9% 49%
Louisiana 260 0.9 49% 61% 54% 4.9% 2.0% 61%
Maine 113 1.8 63% 11% 0.6% 0% 10% 11%
Maryland 138 0.3 51% 5.8% 1.2% 3.9% 0.6% 5.8%
Massachusetts 123 1.0 58% 12% 2.9% 7.0% 1.7% 12%
Michigan 153 0.8 54% 6.4% 0% 2.5% 3.8% 6.6%
Minnesota 94 0.8 67% 24% 13% 7.0% 4.3% 24%
Mississippi 200 2.5 48% 58% 39% 9.7% 9.3% 58%
Missouri 178 1.3 78% 14% 0% 1.2% 12% 14%
Montana 189 2.8 57% 18% 12% 0.2% 5.9% 18%
Nebraska 185 2.1 74% 16% 3.1% 3.6% 8.9% 16%
Nevada 213 1.1 64% 6.9% 0.2% 5.4% 1.0% 7.0%
New Hampshire 81 0.6 43% 27% 3.5% 4.5% 18% 27%
New Jersey 83 0.2 57% 26% 2.3% 16% 7.5% 26%
New Mexico 252 1.9 75% 16% 0% 0.1% 16% 17%
New York 108 0.2 66% 4.8% 0% 1.0% 3.8% 4.8%
North Carolina 195 -1.0 82% 7.9% 0% 1.1% 6.7% 7.9%
North Dakota 154 3.2 74% 17% 0.3% 0.4% 15% 17%
Ohio 171 1.4 65% 4.9% 0% 1.3% 2.6% 4.9%
Oklahoma 261 2.5 75% 10% 0.1% 2.5% 3.5% 9.7%
Oregon 136 0.6 55% 4.7% 0% 0.6% 3.8% 5.1%
Pennsylvania 234 1.7 66% 6.5% 0% 3.5% 2.7% 6.5%
South Carolina 208 1.9 73% 10% 2.9% 1.3% 5.9% 10%
South Dakota 179 2.8 73% 23% 0.05% 0.4% 22% 23%
Tennessee 342 1.6 53% 25% 23% 0.6% 1.7% 25%
Texas 174 0.9 76% 28% 17% 2.9% 7.8% 28%
Utah 161 2.0 43% 30% 21% 1.3% 7.6% 30%
Virginia 230 1.2 46% 30% 24% 0.3% 5.7% 30%
Washington 152 0.9 73% 4.9% 1.6% 0.4% 2.9% 5.9%
West Virginia 223 3.0 56% 23% 17% 0% 0% 23%
Wisconsin 212 2.2 50% 8.6% 3.8% 2.8% 1.9% 8.6%
Wyoming 244 2.3 74% 12% 5.0% 0.5% 6.0% 12%


Sources and methodology

Jail incarceration rate (adjusted), 2019
The number of people incarcerated for local authorities in local jails (excluding people held in jails for state or federal authorities) per 100,000 people in that state. Data collected from Census of Jails, 2019. For the details on the portion of each state or federal population that we removed from the jail population, see the methodology for details on the adjustments made to state jail populations. For statewide populations reported by the Census Bureau, see Appendix Table 6.
Jail growth (adjusted), 1983-2019
The change in a state’s adjusted jail incarceration rate from 1983 to 2013. A figure of 2, for example, means that the adjusted jail incarceration rate is twice as high in 2019 as it was in 1983. (For rates going back to 1978, see Appendix Table 4.)
Percent unconvicted, 2019
The percent of people, in that state, physically held in local jails who are unconvicted or pretrial. This percentage includes individuals who are being held for federal and state authorities. For more information on why we were unable to adjust these state level percentage figures to remove people held for other authorizes, see the methodology. Data collected from Census of Jails, 2019.
Percent held for state and federal authorities, 2019
The percent of people, in that state, being physically held in local jails for all federal and state authorities as reported by jails to the Bureau of Justice Statistics and dividing by the jail population reported by the Bureau of Justice Statistics. Data collected from Census of Jails, 2019.
Percent held for state prisons, 2019
The percent of people being physically held in jails who are being held for a state prison system. We calculated this figure by dividing the number of people held in local jails as reported in Prisoners in 2019 by the jail population reported by the Bureau of Justice Statistics in Census of Jails, 2019.
Percent held for immigration authorities, 2019
The percent of people being physically held in jails who are being held for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (formerly known as the Immigration and Naturalization Service) as collected in the Census of Jails, 2019. We calculated this figure by taking the immigration detention numbers reported by jails to the Bureau of Justice Statistics and dividing it by the jail population reported by the Bureau of Justice Statistics.
Percent held for U.S. Marshals Service, 2019
The percent of people being physically held in jails who are being held for the U.S. Marshals Service as collected in the Census of Jails, 2019. We calculated this figure by taking the Marshals Service detention numbers reported by jails to the Bureau of Justice Statistics and dividing it by the jail population reported by the Bureau of Justice Statistics.
Percent held for other agencies, 2019
The percent of people being physically held in jails for other federal and state agencies including the federal Bureau of Prisons, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and any other agencies specified by jails in their responses to the Bureau of Justice Statistics in the Census of Jails, 2019. We calculated this figure by taking the number of people being held for other state and federal agencies and dividing it by the jail population reported by the Bureau of Justice Statistics.


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