NCJ Number
67581
Date Published
1979
Length
188 pages
Annotation
TABULAR DATA ARE PRESENTED REFLECTING INFORMATION ON FELONS AND MISDEMEANANTS COMMITTED TO THE VIRGINIA CORRECTIONAL SYSTEM DURING FISCAL YEAR 1979.
Abstract
A TOTAL OF 2,732 FELONS WERE COMMITTED TO THE VIRGINIA CORRECTIONAL SYSTEM DURING THE YEAR. THIS REFLECTS A DECREASE OF 235 OR 7.9 PERCENT OVER THE 2,967 FELONS COMMITTED DURING FISCAL 1978. THE 2,732 COMMITMENTS WERE 51.7 PERCENT NONWHITE AND 48.3 PERCENT WHITE. FEMALES CONSTITUTED ONLY 6.5 PERCENT OF THE TOTAL. APPROXIMATELY 53 PERCENT WERE COMMITTED FROM CITY COURTS, 46.4 PERCENT WERE COMMITTED FROM COUNTY COURTS, AND 0.2 PERCENT FROM OUT-OF-STATE COURTS. A REVIEW OF THE TYPE OF OFFENSES COMMITTED BY NEW COMMITMENTS SHOWS THAT 922 OR 33.8 PERCENT COMMITTED OFFENSES AGAINST PERSONS AND 1,294 OR 47.4 PERCENT COMMITTED OFFENSES AGAINST PROPERTY. STATISTICS SHOW THAT 60.4 PERCENT OF THE NEW COMMITMENTS RECEIVED A SENTENCE OF 5 YEARS OR LESS. THE 916 MISDEMEANANTS COMMITTED TO THE SYSTEM DURING 1979 REFLECTS A DECREASE OF 10.8 PERCENT FROM THE PREVIOUS YEAR. THE LARGEST PORTION OF MISDEMEANANTS WAS INITIALLY RECEIVED BY THE CORRECTIONAL FIELD UNITS. APPROXIMATELY 50 PERCENT OF THE MISDEMEANANTS WERE UNDER THE AGE OF 24. OF THE 2,732 NEW COMMITMENTS FOR FELONIES FOR THE YEAR, 16.6 PERCENT HAD SERVED ONE OR MORE PREVIOUS FELON SENTENCES IN THE VIRGINIA CORRECTIONAL SYSTEM. FEMALE RECIDIVISTS CONSTITUTED 4.4 PERCENT OF THE TOTAL NUMBER OF RECIDIVISTS. THE MOST FREQUENT SENTENCE FOR RECIDIVISTS WAS 2 YEARS, WHILE THE MEDIAN SENTENCE WAS 4 YEARS. OVER 20 PERCENT OF THE RECIDIVISTS WERE CLASSIFIED AS BRIGHT NORMAL OR SUPERIOR ACCORDING TO INTELLIGENCE TESTS. AN APPENDIX EXPLAINING THE DATA SOURCE IS INCLUDED.