America: The World's Largest Jailer

The United States has more than twenty percent of the world’s prison population, making us the world’s largest jailer. From 1978 to 2014, our prison population has risen 408%. 1 in 110 adults are incarcerated in a prison or local jail in the U.S. This marks the highest rate of imprisonment in American history. 1 in 35 adults are under some form of correctional control, counting prison, jail, parole or probation. In America, our criminal justice system is about keeping communities safe and treating people fairly, regardless of their skin color or how much money they make. In order for our system to do a good job, it must be cost-effective by using our taxpayer money and public resources wisely, while using solid evidence instead of fear. Unfortunately

our criminal justice system is not doing a good job. It is failing on every count: public safety, fairness and using our money effectively.
The current relationship between urban youth and law enforcement has been characterized as negative by different communities and police officials. Current problems in the relationship have been comprised of; a lack of trust, cultural and racial differences, little or no communication except through law enforcement responding to crime-related incidents, and high levels of animosity, fear, and violence between the two groups. Today, people in urban communities look at the police as enemies. In fact, research consistently shows that minorities are more likely to view law enforcement with suspicion and distrust than whites. Minorities opinion that the police lack lawfulness and legitimacy is based largely on their interactions with the police and often leads to distrust of the police. Distrust of police is a serious problem because it. “undermines the legitimacy of law enforcement, and without legitimacy police lose their ability and authority to function effectively.”
Our money is being used ineffectively on prisons.

Instead of using our money to prevent crime we are spending it on petty crime violators. In fact, 46.4% of inmates in US prisons are incarcerated because of non violent drug crimes. Nigel Morris from Independent explains that “Cash being used to build jails to hold the burgeoning prison population (can) be switched into preventing vulnerable people from being caught up in crime in the first place”. Substance-involved people have come to be a large part of the prison population. Treatment delivered in the community is one of the most cost-effective ways to prevent crimes committed because of substance abuse. It also cost almost $20,000 less than incarceration per person per year. A study by the Washington State Institute for Public Policy found that “every dollar spent on drug treatment in the community yields over $18 in cost savings related to crime. In fact, prisons “only yield $.37 in public safety benefit per dollar spent”. Releasing people to care takers and making treatment available is a cost effective way of reducing drug use, reducing crime associated with drug use and reducing the number of people

incarcerated.
“Racial profiling by law enforcement is commonly defined as a practice that targets people for suspicion of crime based on their race, ethnicity, religion or national origin.” Minorities are being mistreated and wrongly profiled by the police.

A study in Cincinnati found that black drivers had longer stops and higher search rates than white drivers. Minorities frequently report that the police unfairly single them out because of their race or ethnicity. Racial profiling is causing multiple problems in today’s society. Multiple law enforcement agencies have gone through expensive lawsuits over civil rights concerns. The relations between police and citizens in those communities have been full of tension, making policing a lot more difficult than the job already

is.
The incarceration of people who committed nonviolent crimes is the highest in the world.
Nonviolent crimes are defined as property, drug, and public order offenses which do not involve a threat of harm or an actual attack upon a victim. Typically, the most frequently identified nonviolent crimes involve drug trafficking, drug possession, burglary, and larceny. A study shows the “The $24 billion spent last year by federal, state and local units of government to incarcerate 1.2 million nonviolent offenders was almost 50% larger than the entire federal welfare budget ($16.6 billion) which provides income supports for 8.5 million people, and represents six times what the federal government will spend on child care for 1.25 million children.” The study also found that “the overwhelming majority of male jail inmates are not incarcerated for a violent offense (82.4%) and have no violent offense history (64%). “