Incarceration rate
People from this county in jail or prison on an average day, per 100,000 residents aged 15 to 64. That is the age group most often locked up, not the whole population. The middle county is 1,014, about one working-age resident in a hundred.
Reported for2,479areas, in 38 states — none in AK, AR, AZ, CT, DC, DE, HI, ID, LA, MT, PR, RI, VA, VT
Link to density0.13not mostly about how urban a place is
Nearby places alike0.17Moran’s I: only weakly, little map pattern
Typerateper 100,000 aged 15-64
How it has moved
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Every state, every year
Nothing to draw here: this measure has no state figures. Its publisher reports it for counties. This site does not add county numbers up into state figures, since a home-made figure could clash with one an agency publishes itself. The chart above covers the whole country, year by year.
Where it comes from
· Vera Incarceration Trends total_incarceration_rate
Jail and prison together: everyone from this county who is locked up on an average day, wherever they are held. Rates are per 100,000 residents aged 15 to 64, not per 100,000 people. Time period: from the jail series the Bureau of Justice Statistics collected until 2019, which is also the last year Vera publishes county prison data.
Combining areas: an average weighted by total population.
What it goes with
The strongest links that have a page of their own. Unadjusted is the link before adjusting for anything, from −1 (opposite) to +1 (in step). Adjusted compares places with the same population density, income and education levels, so those differences can’t explain the link. This list leaves out the 4 pairs built from the same numbers or the same model as this measure, since they are bound to match.
| Measure | Unadjusted | Adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Incarceration rate and Infant mortalityLinked across counties, but mostly as both follow how urban, rich and educated a place is. Comparing only places with similar density, income and education, a weak link of +0.21 remains. Infant mortality by US county | +0.50 | +0.21 |
| Incarceration rate and Other religion adherentsPoints one way across counties (+0.08) and the other across people (-0.05), when bigger places count for more: the average county and the average resident disagree. Other religion adherents by US county | +0.00 | +0.08 |
Population makeup
How this measure varies with the racial and ethnic makeup of counties. Every group is shown, whatever its rank. These are links across counties: they describe places, not people. They say nothing about any person’s risk or behaviour based on their race. Counties with a larger share of one group also differ in much else, such as income, segregation, region and history. The adjusted figure only accounts for density, income and education.
| Share of residents | Unadjusted | Adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Incarceration rate and Share White, not HispanicWhere Incarceration rate is higher, Share White, not Hispanic tends to be lower: a weak link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared. Share White, not Hispanic by US county | -0.16 | -0.16 |
| Incarceration rate and Share Black, not HispanicWhere Incarceration rate is higher, Share Black, not Hispanic tends to be higher: a weak link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Share Black, not Hispanic by US county | +0.22 | +0.14 |
| Incarceration rate and Share Hispanic or Latino, any raceWhere Incarceration rate is higher, Share Hispanic or Latino, any race tends to be higher: a weak link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared. Share Hispanic or Latino, any race by US county | +0.13 | +0.15 |
| Incarceration rate and Share Asian, not HispanicCould easily be chance once only places with similar density, income and education are compared. Share Asian, not Hispanic by US county | -0.19 | +0.03 |
| Incarceration rate and Share American Indian or Alaska Native, not HispanicCould easily be chance once only places with similar density, income and education are compared. Share American Indian or Alaska Native, not Hispanic by US county | +0.04 | -0.03 |
Highest and lowest
Of 2,479 counties reporting it. These are the two ends of a national ranking. For most measures, that ranking mostly sorts places by income and how urban they are. That is why the place pages compare each place with similar places instead.
Highest
- Issaquena County, MS — 27,117
- Tallahatchie County, MS — 22,899
- Brooks County, TX — 20,350
- Irwin County, GA — 18,082
- Fulton County, KY — 15,443
Lowest
- Traill County, ND — 121
- Grundy County, IA — 147
- Los Alamos County, NM — 161
- Morris County, NJ — 163
- Middlesex County, MA — 168
The middle area reports 1,014. The middle half of counties falls between 697 and 1,482 (the 25th to 75th percentile).
All measures · Explore its pairs · How the US county data works