Issue: Costs of Jailing

Implementation Guide

Interagency Collaboration Jail Costs Pretrial and Bail June 12, 2019

Paid in Full: A Plan to End Money Injustice in New Orleans

Vera Institute of Justice

The role that money—in the form of bail, fines and fees—plays in criminal justice systems has come under increased focus. These practices have long plagued New Orleans, driving jail incarceration and costing struggling families—most of them black—millions. By taking the actions set out in this report, Criminal District Court judges, the mayor, and city council members will make New Orleans the first city in the country to replace money bail and conviction fees with a fair, safety-promoting, and financially stable system of justice.

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Report

Data Analysis Jail Costs Jail Populations January 26, 2017

Following the Money of Mass Incarceration

Prison Policy Initiative

The cost of imprisonment—including who benefits and who pays—is a major part of the national discussion around criminal justice policy. But prisons and jails are just one piece of the criminal justice system. In this report and accompanying infographic, the Prison Policy Initiative examines how the justice system works by identifying some of the key stakeholders and calculating how much they benefit from the system.  

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Report

Human Toll of Jail Jail Populations Pretrial and Bail February 24, 2016

The Human Toll of Jail

The Vera Institute of Justice

There are more than 3,000 jails in the United States, holding 731,000 people on any given day—more than the population of Detroit and nearly as many people as live in San Francisco. But there’s more to the story of jail incarceration than just the numbers. In collaboration with media publisher Narratively as part of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation’s Safety and Justice Challenge, Vera’s The Human Toll of Jail project aims to shed light on the everyday experiences of those caught up in local justice systems and those tasked with administering them, illustrating not only what’s going wrong, but also how we can do better.

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Report

Data Analysis Interagency Collaboration Jail Costs May 14, 2015

The Price of Jails: Measuring the Taxpayer Cost of Local Incarceration

The Vera Institute of Justice

Jails are far more expensive than previously understood, as significant jail expenditures—such as employee salaries and benefits, health care and education programs for incarcerated people, and general administration—are paid for by county or municipal general funds, and are not reflected in jail budgets. Drawing on surveys from 35 jail jurisdictions from 18 states, this report determined that even the jurisdictions themselves had difficulty pinning down the total cost of their local jail or jail system. It also highlights how the surest way to safely cut costs is to reduce the number of people who enter and stay in jails. In doing so, jurisdictions will be able to save resources and make the investments necessary to address the health and social service needs of their communities, which have for too long landed at the doorstep of their jails.

Additional Downloads

• Report Summary

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