NCJ Number
161482
Date Published
1993
Length
22 pages
Annotation
This report projects that the backlog of State offenders in Texas county jails will be 21,408 by 1995 and that the population of State jails will be 12,549.
Abstract
The projection updated projections published by the Criminal Justice Policy Council on October 30, 1992. The projection used the JUSTICE computerized projection and simulation model developed by the Council. The projection assumed the continuation of the prison release policy of the last 5 months of 75 releases per day. It took into account the increase in prison capacity due to the settlement of the Ruiz case and new State jail capacity. The analysis revealed that if current prison release and sentencing policies continue, Texas will not be able to meet its commitment, under House Bill 93, to accept, by September 1, 1995, all offenders sentenced to prison. If the current release policy continues, the State will allocate a substantial proportion of new prison capacity to increasing the time served for offenders admitted to prison rather than to reducing the jail backlog. Time served in prison is projected to increase from an average of 20 months or 18 percent of sentence in 1991 to 40 months or 38 percent of sentence by the year 2000. Figures, tables, and appended figures and tables