Institutional Correction Facilities and Staff

Institutional corrections facilities include prisons and jails. Prisons are state or federal housing facilities that confine convicted felons with sentences typically longer than a year. Jails are administered by local law enforcement and hold offenders with shorter sentences — usually for 1 year or less — and those awaiting trial.

NIJ's research and development program responds to the needs of corrections practitioners and to the changing nature of corrections. NIJ sponsors research which aims to improve the management of correctional facilities at the state and local level; understanding the impact of technology in improving staff and inmate safety; and how state and federal legislation, for example, the Prison Rape Elimination Act, affects safety and security and administration of policies and procedures.

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