At the national level, including both state and federal imprisonment, 47 out of every 100,000 women were in prison in 2021. The rate at which women are incarcerated varies greatly from state to state. Washington, DC: Bureau of Justice Statistics State Variation *In these states with integrated jail and prison systems, data include both jail and prison populations. Highest and Lowest Female State Imprisonment Rates (per 100,000 U.S. Washington, DC: Bureau of Justice Statistics Between 20, the rate of imprisonment in state and federal prisons declined by 70% for Black women, while the rate of imprisonment for white women rose by 12%.įemale Imprisonment Rate per 100,000, by Race and Ethnicity, 2000-2021.The rate of imprisonment for Black and Latinx women has declined since 2000, while the rate of imprisonment for white women has increased.Latinx women were imprisoned at 1.3 times the rate of white women (49 vs.In 2021, the imprisonment rate for Black women (62 per 100,000) was 1.6 times the rate of imprisonment for white women (38 per 100,000).Washington, DC: Bureau of Justice Statistics. Probation and Parole in the United States, 2021. Washington, DC: Bureau of Justice Statistics Kaeble, D. (2022) Jail Inmates in 2021 – Statistical Tables. Washington, DC: Bureau of Justice Statistics Zeng, Z. There are approximately 976,000 women under the supervision of the criminal justice system. Though many more men are in prison than women, the rate of growth for female imprisonment has been twice as high as that of men since 1980. Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics: Historical Corrections Statistics in the United States 1850-1984 (1986) Prison and Jail Inmates at Midyear Series (1997- 2021), Prisoners Series (1980-2021). While 2020 saw a substantial downsizing due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this trend reversed with a 10% increase in 2021. 1īetween 19, the number of incarcerated women increased by more than 525%, rising from a total of 26,326 in 1980 to 168,449 in 2021. Over (half 58%) of imprisoned women in state prisons have a child under the age of 18. The female incarcerated population stands over six times higher than in 1980. This is the result of more expansive law enforcement efforts, stiffer drug sentencing laws, and post-conviction barriers to reentry that uniquely affect women. Over the past quarter century, there has been a profound change in the involvement of women within the criminal justice system.

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