The incarcerated population grew by 48,452 inmates between midyear 2003 and midyear 2004. Jail inmates grew by 3.3 percent, state prisoners by 1.3 percent, and federal prisoners by 6.3 percent. On June 30, 2004, there were an estimated 726 persons per 100,000 U.S. residents in prison or jail. Reported by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, April 24, 2005. “Prison and Jail Inmates at Midyear 2004″ (NCJ-208801),
Libraries and People in Jail:
“While we may not be able to change the prison-industrial complex that has grown so much over the last decades we can, as working librarians, take first steps. We can seek to ensure that people held in local jails have library service. There are some public libraries and projects that provide guidance in this path. If we help one even one person, we help all.” –from “Public Libraries and People in Jail” Reference and User Services Quarterly 44 (Fall 2004): 26-30.