Today, 1 in every 70
Tennessee adults is in jail or prison.
A just and fair criminal justice system will ensure that every Tennessean has the opportunity to become a productive member of society.
Key facts
As of June 2015, there were:
inmates in Tennessee
prisons
Tennesseans on
parole or probation
Nearly 5,000 inmates will leave Tennessee prisons
each year, all needing a path to re-enter
society, including finding gainful employment.
the prison population)
A 2010 study showed that:
of people released from Tennessee
prisons are re-incarcerated
within three years.
It costs $2,200 per month to house a single inmate.
(that’s 2x the median
mortgage payment...
and 3x the median rent
in Tennessee).
Between 2000 – 2013:
Tennessee’s prison population
grew by 30%
Tennessee’s total population
only increased by 13%
Between 1981 and 2013:
1981
2013
Tennessee’s imprisonment rate increased by 256%
People of color make up:
24.3% of Tennessee’s
total population
45% of Tennessee’s
felony inmate population
Minority youth make up:
34.7% of Tennessee’s
K-12 public school students
68% of the students being
suspended or expelled