We have mentioned in previous blog posts that the United States is the world leader, by far, when it comes to incarceration. The statistics demonstrate that the US position in this area is extraordinary. Here are some details.
- The United States has just 5% of the world’s population but houses 25% of the world’s prisoners. And Arizona ranks fifth in the rate of incarceration among all the states in the country.
- Several decades ago, we could have told you that our country’s incarceration rate even then was out of control in comparison with other nations around the world. And since the 1980’s, the US prison population has quadrupled.
- During that same period, the increase in the Arizona prison population rose by 1,200%. This was far greater than the increase in the population in our state during the same period.
- Finally, and perhaps most importantly, while Arizona’s prison population continued to grow – the increase from 2000 to 2018 was 60% – both the rates of property crimes and violent crimes fell, the former by 44% and the latter by 12%.
In an article from the Arizona State University Academy for Justice, the authors make an excellent case for the fact that the criminal justice system in our state is in dire need of reform. The authors point to a number of factors, including the fact that the cost of imprisoning so many citizens appears to be fiscally unsustainable. But the authors also point to what they consider the most significant cause of the increase in the prison population, i.e., the lengthy sentences imposed in Arizona,
Arizona Length of Prison Stay
It is the length of the prison stay in Arizona that sets the state apart from other areas of the country. This includes sentencing disparities that include an average length of prison time for:
- Property crimes: 100% longer than the national average.
- Drug crimes: 40% longer than the national average.
- Violent crimes: 25% longer than the national average.
Finally, for those who still cling to the notion that longer sentences reduce the crime rate, consider that the lengthy sentences in Arizona, as compared with other states, should have had some effect by now. In fact, studies show that the state ranks among the top ten in the overall crime rate. This fact – substantially higher than average sentencing in a state which has one of the highest crime rates in the country, a rate that continues to grow – appears to resolve any doubt about the issue.
Law Offices of David A. Black
40 North Central Avenue #1850
Phoenix, AZ 85004
(480) 280-8028