Inmate Characteristics and Factors Associated with Sentencing

This study examined two criminal justice data resources to investigate various characteristics about the prison population, to ascertain if any of those factors are related to sentencing trends. Data from the Center for Juvenile and Criminal Justice Sentencing, and the Bureau of Justice Statistics were reviewed to establish if the sentencing practices were associated with extra-legal factors. Additionally, the prison population in Mississippi was examined to reveal that the vast majority of inmates had both prior arrests (90%) and prior convictions (80%). Furthermore, most had been convicted of violent offenses or parole violations. The results of this study suggest that there may be extra-legal considerations in the sentencing of the inmates which comprise the population of our prison system