BJS: Bureau of Justice Statistics

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Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS)
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Community Corrections (Probation and Parole)
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The Bureau of Justice Statistics maintains two annual data series, the Annual Probation Survey and the Annual Parole Survey, designed to provide national, federal, and jurisdiction-level data from administrative records of adults supervised in the community on probation or parole. Both data series also collect information on the characteristics of probationers and parolees.

 The Bureau of Justice Statistics also maintains the annual data series, the National Corrections Reporting Program designed to provide data from:

  • administrative records on annual prison admissions and releases and on parole entries and discharges in participating jurisdictions,
  • individual prisoner records on the characteristics and composition of the prison and parole populations.

Summary findings

  • At yearend 2010, there were an estimated 4,887,900 adults under supervision in the community either on probation or parole — the equivalent of about 1 out of every 48 adults in the U.S.
  • Probationers (4,055,514) represented the majority (83%) of the community supervision population at yearend 2010, while parolees (840,676) accounted for a smaller share (17%).
  • The total community supervision population declined (down 1.3% or 66,700 offenders) during 2010 for the second consecutive year. This was also only the second decline in the community supervision population since BJS began its Annual Probation Survey and Annual Parole Survey in 1980. Prior to the decline of 0.9% during 2009, the community supervision population increased an average of 1.4% each year from 4,565,100 at yearend 2000 to 5,095,000 by yearend 2008.
  • The probation population decreased by 1.7% (down 69,519 probationers) during 2010, resulting from a more rapid decline in probation entries (down 4.5%) than in probation exits (down 2.8%).
  • During 2010, the total parole population increased by 0.3% (2,858 parolees). While the state parole population decreased by 2,096 during 2010, this decrease was offset by an increase of 4,954 in the federal parole population.
  • The number of entries to probation (2,190,200) declined for the third consecutive year, and the number of exits from probation (2,261,300) declined for the first time since 2006.
  • The rate of incarceration during 2010 (5.7%) among probationers at risk of violating their conditions supervision—the number of probationers under supervision at the beginning of the year plus the number who entered supervision during the year—remained at about the same level observed in 2000 (5.5%).
  • Among parolees at risk of violating the conditions of their supervision, about 13% were reincarcerated during 2010, down from about 16% reincarcerated during 2000.

    At the end of 2010 —

    – 73% of probationers were on active supervision, as were 82% of parolees. This type of supervision decreased as a percentage of all parolees, down from 85% in 2009. Active supervision requires offenders to regularly report to a probation or parole authority in person, by telephone, by mail, or electronically. A corresponding increase in the percentage of parolees on inactive status, excluded from regular reporting but still on parole, was observed between 2009 (4%) and 2010 (7%). Most of this change was related to a California law that went into effect in January 2010 that required parolees who meet specific criteria to be placed on non-revocable parole. These parolees on non-revocable parole meet BJS’s definition of inactive status because they are excluded from regular reporting but are still on parole.
    – 50% of probationers were felons, unchanged from 2009. At yearend 2010, property offenders represented 28% of the probation population, and drug offenders represented 26%. About 19% of probationers were supervised for a violent offense.
    – Drug offenders represented a slightly smaller share of the parole population at yearend 2010 (35%) compared to 2009 (36%).Violent offenders accounted for 27% of the parole population, unchanged from 2009.

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Terms & Definitions

Community corrections Community corrections refers to the supervision of criminal offenders in the resident population, as opposed to confining them in secure correctional facilities. The two main types of community corrections supervision are probation and parole. Community corrections is also referred to as community supervision.
 
Parole Parole refers to criminal offenders who are conditionally released from prison to serve the remaining portion of their sentence in the community. Prisoners may be released to parole by a parole board decision (discretionary release/discretionary parole), according to provisions of a statute (mandatory release/mandatory parole), through other types of post-custody conditional supervision, or as the result of a sentence to a term of supervised release. In the federal system, a term of supervised release is a sentence to a fixed period of supervision in the community that follows a sentence to a period of incarceration in federal prison, both of which are ordered at the time of sentencing by a federal judge. Parolees can have a number of different supervision statuses including active supervision, which means they are required to regularly report to a parole authority in person, by mail, or by telephone. Some parolees may be on an inactive status which means they are excluded from regularly reporting, and that could be due to a number of reasons. For instance, some may receive a reduction in supervision, possibly due to compliance or meeting all required conditions before the parole sentence terminates, and therefore may be moved from an active to inactive status. Other supervision statues include parolees who only have financial conditions remaining, have absconded, or who have active warrants. Parolees are also typically required to fulfill certain conditions and adhere to specific rules of conduct while in the community. Failure to comply with any of the conditions can result in a return to incarceration.
 
Probation Probation refers to adult offenders whom courts place on supervision in the community through a probation agency, generally in lieu of incarceration. However, some jurisdictions do sentence probationers to a combined short-term incarceration sentence immediately followed by probation, which is referred to as a split sentence. Probationers can have a number of different supervision statuses including active supervision, which means they are required to regularly report to a probation authority in person, by mail, or by telephone. Some probationers may be on an inactive status which means they are excluded from regularly reporting, and that could be due to a number of reasons. For instance, some probationers may be placed on inactive status immediately because the severity of the offense was minimal or some may receive a reduction in supervision and therefore may be moved from an active to inactive status. Other supervision statuses include probationers who only have financial conditions remaining, have absconded, or who have active warrants. In many instances, while on probation, offenders are required to fulfill certain conditions of their supervision (e.g., payment of fines, fees or court costs, participation in treatment programs) and adhere to specific rules of conduct while in the community. Failure to comply with any conditions can result in incarceration.
 
Total correctional population Total correctional population is the population of persons incarcerated, either in a prison or a jail, and persons supervised in the community, either on probation or parole.
 
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