Report: local jail populations fell 25% in spring due to fewer arrests, more releases; continuing will help fight pandemic - Entrepreneur Generations

From mid-March to mid-April the number of people in local jails in the U.S. fell by an "unprecedented" one quarter, according to a newly released data analysis by the Vera Institute of Justice. Intake was down because defendants who would normally be arrested were allowed to stay home and law enforcement made fewer arrests. Also, many judges and prosecutors allowed early release of prisoners deemed low-threat.

"But as the United States faces continued outbreaks of covid-19, it is crucial to recognize that decarceration has still been inadequate, from both a public safety and a public health perspective," the report says. "Maintaining recent reductions and further reducing jail populations will make communities safer in the coming months and years by reducing the likelihood and severity of future outbreaks of covid-19 and enabling reinvestment of state and local dollars into community-based services and resources that support public health and public safety."

Jails and prisons continue to be a major source of coronavirus spread in rural areas, due to lack of social distancing, cleanliness issues, and detainee transfers to prisons and jails.

The Marshall Project has frequently updated data on covid-19 prison deaths by state.

from The Rural Blog https://ift.tt/31tpDA4 Report: local jail populations fell 25% in spring due to fewer arrests, more releases; continuing will help fight pandemic - Entrepreneur Generations

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