-Caveat Lector- Probation, Parole Numbers Top 4M WASHINGTON (AP) - Americans on parole or probation at the end of 1998 numbered more than 4 million for the first time ever last year, but differences in policies made for wide variations among the states, the Justice Department reports. There were large declines in the number of adults on parole in several states, including Virginia, down 37 percent, and North Carolina, down 30 percent, the department's Bureau of Justice Statistics said Sunday. In contrast, Ohio had a 66 percent increase in parolees and Idaho reported a 55 percent jump. A change in Ohio law contributed to its increase, said Thomas P. Bonczar, a bureau statistician. ``A lot of states are passing mandatory parole,'' he explained. At the same time, the increase in the number of parolees was balanced by states that have toughened their laws to keep offenders in prison longer. The national release rate declined from 37 per 100 prisoners in 1990 to 31 in 1997, while average time served increased from 22 months in 1990 to 27 months in 1997, Bonczar said. Overall, 3,417,613 people were on probation and 704,964 were on parole at the end of 1998, up from 3,296,768 and 694,787, respectively, a year earlier. Adding those in prisons or jails, the U.S. correctional population totaled 5,890,300 last Dec. 31, up from 5,726,500 when 1997 ended. A probationer is a person convicted of a crime and sentenced to supervision outside jail; a parolee is an offender under conditional supervision after serving a prison term. Idaho and Vermont each reported a 21 percent increase in their probation populations, the largest among the states, while 11 states reported declines. Bonczar noted that while violent crime has declined in recent years, there have been increases in drug abuse violations and convictions for fraud and forgery, which tend to be the types of crimes for which people are sentenced to probation. Some 96 percent of parolees had been convicted of a felony. Fifty-seven percent of those on probation had committed a felony, 40 percent were convicted of misdemeanors and the rest were found guilty of other infractions. The 1998 parolee population was 55 percent white, 44 percent black, 21 percent Hispanic - who can be of any race - and 88 percent male. In 1990, 52 percent of parolees were white, 47 percent black, 18 percent Hispanic and 92 percent male. Among those on probation, 79 percent were male, down from 82 percent in 1990. Whites made up 64 percent of probationers, down from 68 percent, while the share of blacks grew from 31 percent to 35 percent. Hispanics made up 15 percent of probationers, down from 18 percent in 1990. DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance�not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
