Incarceration in the United States peaked in 2008. Since then, many jurisdictions have expanded alternatives for low-level offenders, decriminalized some minor offenses, and reformed police practices. As a result, the nation’s incarceration rate has declined from 1,000 inmates per 100,000 adults to 830 inmates per 100,000 adults.
The FIRST STEP Act, signed into law last year, is federal criminal justice reform that is designed to reduce sentences for nonviolent offenses — a sign that this decline will likely continue.
This is good news for those of us who care about creating a more rational and humane justice system. But because FIRST STEP will only impact federal inmates (and only a fraction of those), it won’t have a direct effect on the vast majority of the more than 2 million people who are incarcerated. Further state and local reform is needed to successfully and safely reduce the incarcerated population.
[For more on this story by Jonathan Lippman, go to https://www.usatoday.com/story...son-jail/2483698002/]
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