Report: 7.2 Million Adults Under Criminal Justice Supervision

WASHINGTON — The number of people incarcerated, on probation or on parole reached a record high of 7.2 million, according to a Department of Justice report.

More than 5 million adult offenders were under supervision within the federal, state or local criminal justice systems at the end of 2006, according to the most recent report by the Bureau of Justice Statistics.

There were 4.2 million offenders on probation, about 2.2 million inmates in prisons and jails, and almost 800,000 offenders on parole, according to the report.

The BJS statistics reveal that about 3.2 percent of the adult population, or one in every 31 adults, was under some degree of correctional supervision at the local, state or federal level.

Between 2005-06, the prison population increased by 3.1 percent and the jail population increased by 2.5 percent. With an increase of 1.8 percent in 2006, the combined probation and parole population reached more than 5 million offenders for the first time in history.

Five states accounted for almost 60 percent of the growth in the probation population, which increased by more than 1.7 percent, or 70,000 offenders, during 2006. California reported the highest increase in the number of probationers with more than 13,400 additional offenders placed on probation.

Minnesota reported an increase of almost 8,500 offenders on probation, while Alabama and Colorado reported increases of about 7,000 probationers. Pennsylvania reported more than 4,600 additional probationers during 2006.

The parole population increased by more than 17,500 offenders, or 2.3 percent, during 2006. Since 1995, the average annual increase in the parole population is 1.5 percent, according to the BJS.

Fourteen states reported double-digit increases in their parole population, with North Dakota leading with a 23 percent increase. Three states reported double-digit decreases, led by Oklahoma, which reported a decline of 29 percent.