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Bureau of Justice Statistics releases “Jail Inmates in 2023 – Statistical Tables”

By Douglas Berman

Via email, I learned this morning that the Bureau of Justice Statistics has now published new data about jail populations as of 2023 under the exciting title “Jail Inmates in 2023 – Statistical Tables.”  The new data is available now only in the form of this web-based report, and here are its listed “Introduction” and “Highlights”:

At midyear 2023, local jails held 664,200 persons in custody, similar to midyear 2022 (663,100) and marking a 9% decrease in the inmate population compared to the 731,200 10 years earlier.  The rate of incarceration stood at 198 persons per 100,000 U.S. residents, a 14% decline from 231 jail inmates per 100,000 a decade ago.  From July 2022 to June 2023, local jails nationwide recorded 7.6 million admissions.  While this represented a 4% increase from the 7.3 million admissions the year before, annual admissions were 35% lower than a decade ago when admissions totaled 11.7 million.

  • At midyear 2023, local jails held 664,200 persons in custody, similar to midyear 2022 (663,100) and marking a 9% decrease in the inmate population compared to a decade ago (731,200).

  • Between 2020 and 2023, the number of adults in local jails increased by 21%, while the population of individuals age 65 and over grew disproportionately by 78%.

  • There were 198 persons incarcerated in jail per 100,000 U.S. residents at midyear 2023, down from 231 inmates per 100,000 at midyear 2013.

  • From July 2022 to June 2023, people admitted to local jails spent an average of 32 days in custody before release, 7 days longer compared to 8 years prior (25 days).

  • The number of inmates held in local jails for federal and state prison authorities declined by 32,600 (down 26%) from 2013 to 2023.

  • The number of persons held in local jails for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement decreased by 60% from 2013 to 2023.

  • At midyear 2023, there were a total of 915,800 jail beds in the United States and 73% of the beds were occupied.

  • After a 12% increase from 2015 to 2019, the number of staff employed at local jails decreased to 211,700 by midyear 2023, falling below the 2015 level (213,000).