Louisiana, which has long been home to the nation’s highest per-capita incarceration rate, is one of just five states that is expecting to see its state prison population shrink through 2018, according to a Pew Charitable Trusts review of 34 states.
That makes Louisiana—which is projected to see its prison population fall by 3% through 2018—an unlikely outlier. The Pew analysis shows the nation’s state prison population is poised to grow by 3% through 2018, reversing a short-lived trend of shrinking prison populations in the U.S.
As The Washington Post reports, the state prison population across the U.S. has essentially known only one direction since the late 1970s: up. But, in 2009, something changed. After all those years of growth, the prison population begin to shrink. And the trend held steady—until last year, when growth made a comeback. Now, at least according to the Pew analysis, it may be here to stay.
The data shows a wide variety by state. Three states foresee double-digit growth: Iowa expects 16%, Wyoming projects 14% and Alaska expects its prison population to grow by 11%. Hawaii and Idaho expect no growth, while five more—Louisiana, North Carolina, Oregon, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania—expect their state prison populations to shrink. At 6%, only Pennsylvania is expected to see its prison population shrink more than Louisiana’s. Read the full story.
