# Presentation: 219472

## Parents in the Criminal Justice System and the Impact on Children and Families

**Prepared for: **
**Children of Parents in the Criminal Justice System:**
**Children at Risk**
- Sponsored by:
- The National Institute on Drug Abuse
- November 6, 2006

**Amy Solomon**
**Janine Zweig**
- The Urban Institute

## Presentation Overview 

- HHS Conference
- Parents in the Criminal Justice System
- Impact of Incarceration on Children
- Reunification Challenges for Families
- Impact on Communities and Roles for Service Systems
- Research and Policy Opportunities

**Notes:**
Good morning. We just heard from Chris about the large number of people in CJS system and their 7.3 M kids.  So the question becomes, “What do we know about impact of parental incarceration on their children and what are the opportunities for further research and policy intervention?”

In 2001 we were tasked by HHS/ASPE to undertake a project to explore this topic.  This morning Janine and I are going to give a brief overview of some of that work.  We will describe that project then take each of the next 4 topics in turn.  

Parents in the Criminal Justice System
Impact of Incarceration on Children
Reunification Challenges for Families
Impact on Communities and Roles for Service Systems
We’re going to cover these issues pretty briefly, but it looks like a lot of the material will be expanded on in Panel 2.
We will conclude with some research and policy opportunities for the field.  

## National Policy Conference: Building a Knowledge Base 

- National policy conference “From Prison to Home: The Effects of Incarceration and Reentry on Children, Families, and Communities”
- Sponsored by HHS/ASPE, held at NIH in 2002
- 10 papers commissioned
- _Prisoners Once Removed: The Impact of Incarceration and Reentry on Children, Families, and Communities_
- Focused on research, policy and program issues at the intersection of health and human services and criminal justice system

**Notes:**

In 2001 ASPE funded a project [title} which involved:
10 commissioned papers and a mapping presentation ...  to summarize what was known from research and practice.  Several of the authors are here today.
Papers revised with add’l... book edited by JT and MW  
Second, a state symposium was held in November 2001 to gain insight into how states are responding to these issues. 
Third, a national policy conference was held on January 30-31, 2002 at the National Institutes of Health to discuss the papers and get feedback from policy makers at the federal, state and local level, from practitioners, and from the research community. About 300 leaders from criminal justice and health and human services fields participated in the conference. 

## Parents in the Criminal Justice System

- 7 million in criminal justice system
- 3.7 million are parents
- 1.4 million in state and federal prisons
- > 700,000 are parents
- Average time served = 2.5 years
- Substance abuse histories, health issues
- 40% will be released within a year
- Prison is an opportunity to improve skills, treat addictions, prepare for life on outside

**Notes:**
So I’m going to start with parents in the CJS.  As we heard from Chris there are:
7 million individuals in the criminal justice system (prison, jail, P&P)
3.7 million are parents
1.4 million in state and federal prisons.  700,000 are parents.  Most of this presentation focuses on children of prisoners b/c that’s where the work to date has focused.

So people outside our line of work often think that once prisoners are locked up, they’re locked up for good.  Not the case.  95% return to communities.  In fact:
Average time served = 2.5 years
Substance abuse histories, health issues
40% will be released within a year
Prison is an opportunity to improve skills, treat addictions, prepare for life on outside
Unfortunately, the reality is often that the minority of prisoners get treatment, training, parenting skills... 

## DOC Investments in Supporting Parents

- BJS 2003 (Census of State and Federal Correctional Facilities)
- About half of prisons offer parenting programs
- 40% of community based facilities offer parenting programs
- NIC 2002 (Services for Families of Prison Inmates)
- 35% of DOCs have agency-wide policies and programs aimed at benefiting children of inmates
- 52% report agency-wide policies and programs that help maintain relationships with families

**Notes:**
The good news is the DOCs are beginning to recognize the important roles that families can play.  Not necessarily reflected in these numbers though.  

According to a BJS report from 2003:
About half of prisons offer parenting programs. Although this doesn’t mean that 50% of inmates receive parenting classes! 
40% of community based facilities offer parenting programs
(bjs 2003 census of state and federal correctional facilities)

Looking beyond individual institutions and now at state DOCs which run the institutions, it looks like most DOCs report having some type of family-related initiative underway, but only half report agency-wide policies or programs.  So about:
35% DOCs have agency-wide policies and programs aimed at benefiting children of inmates 
52% report a-w pol/prog that help maintain relationships with families
Services for Families of Prison Inmates" DOJ, NIC, Special Issues in Corrections, 2002
+++++++++++
Notes - Examples of efforts:
Inmates placement and visitation assistance: 27 agencies make effort to place parent in facility near child/family; 24 do or can not (n/a for RI,  NYC and Saipan) 20 (37%) report visitation assistance for families.
Services (available much less often for men v women): parenting classes (both without -most common- and with children present- 25%, 6 DOCs make available for men)... parent-child programs in facility (more than half, offered to only women in 3x as many agencies) and out of facility (7 agencies make available for women; only 3 for men)

## Obstacles to Parent-Child Contact in Prison

- Geographic location of prison facilities
- Women are housed in prisons an average of 160 miles from their children; men an average of 100 miles
- Inadequate information about visiting procedures
- Intimidating, uncomfortable, and humiliating visiting procedures
- Difficulty scheduling visits
- Family’s inability to afford transportation
- Foster parents or caregivers unwilling to facilitate visits
- Expensive long-distance phone charges
- ***DOC mission = safe and secure environment

**Notes:**
We heard from Chris that about 2/3 of inmates report some kind of monthly contact with their children, but more than half have never been visited by their children.  Let’s look for a moment at some of the reasons why.

[bullets]

## Research Suggests Maintaining Contact Can Have Positive Outcomes

- Most incarcerated mothers and fathers want to be good parents
- Maintaining family contact while in prison may improve outcomes
- Can reduce strain of parental separation
- Reduce recidivism rates
- Increase likelihood of successful reentry

**Notes:**
And while there’s not a lot of large-scale rigorous research on the topic, what’s out there suggests that maintaining family contact while in prison may improve outcomes (La Vigne et al. 2005; Edin, Nelson, and Paranal 2004; Klein, Bartholomew, and Hibbert 2002; Hairston 2002; Adams and Fischer 1976; Holt & Miller 1972; Glaser 1969; Ohlin 1954)

Most incarcerated mothers and fathers – like other parents – want to be good parents
Maintaining family contact while in prison may improve outcomes.  There is some evidence that it can: 
-- reduce strain of parental separation
-- reduce recidivism rates
-- Increase likelihood of successful reentry

I’m sure Creasie Finney Hairston will discuss this research in more detail

HAND OVER TO JANINE

## Children of Prisoners

- 1.5 million children have a parent incarcerated in state or federal prison
- 2.1% of all minor children had a parent in state or federal prison
- 7% of African American children
- 7.3 million children have parent under any justice system supervision:
- 10% of all minor children

**Notes:**
JANINE.
Let’s now turn to the impact of incarceration on children.   As we heard from Chris, 

[bullets]

So, an increasing number of children in our society are impacted by the incarceration of a parent. Importantly, these young people are already at high risk along several fronts and tend to live in conditions characterized by poverty, instability and diminished access to sources of support. Parental incarceration is generally not the cause of these precarious living conditions (although the root causes may be similar, e.g., cycles of poverty and violence, substance abuse and addiction), but certainly exacerbates the situation for many children and has been associated with a number of negative outcomes. Yet, until recently, the issue of parental incarceration as a contributing factor to children’s service needs has remained relatively hidden from the health and human services and juvenile justice systems serving these children. 

## Possible Developmental Effects of Parental Arrest and Incarceration on Children

- Adapted from Katherine Gabel and Denise Johnston, 1997, *Children of Incarcerated Parents*, New York: Lexington Books and with permission from Lexington Books.

**Notes:**
Losing a parent to prison affects multiple aspects of children’s lives and affects them to varying degrees.  Such a loss can likely have a significant impact on the emotional, psychological, developmental, and financial well-being of the child.  Yet there has been little research exploring these consequences of parental incarceration.  The broader phenomenon of parental separation and loss, particularly in the context of divorce or death, has, by contrast, received substantial research attention.  This body of literature provides a framework for understanding possible repercussions of parental imprisonment for the children left behind. 

This literature suggests that parental separation due to imprisonment can have profound consequences for children. The immediate effects can include feelings of shame, social stigma, loss of financial support, weakened ties to the parent, changes in family composition, poor school performance, increased delinquency, and increased risk of abuse or neglect.  Long-term effects can range from the questioning of parental authority, negative perceptions of police and the legal system, increased dependency or maturational regression, impaired ability to cope with future stress or trauma, disruption of development, and intergenerational patterns of criminal behavior.

Across developmental periods, parental arrest and incarceration may impact key developmental tasks. These effects can vary considerably given the child’s age.  For example, parental incarceration interrupts key developmental tasks particularly during adolescence, when parent-child relations strongly influence issues of identity 

## Possible Developmental Effects of Parental Arrest and Incarceration on Children

- Adapted from Katherine Gabel and Denise Johnston, 1997, *Children of Incarcerated Parents*, New York: Lexington Books and with permission from Lexington Books.

## Children of Prisoners Loss of a Parent to Prison is often Traumatic

- Loss of a parent is experienced as a traumatic event and may contribute to an unstable environment
- Situations characterized by uncertainty and stress divert a child’s energies from developmental tasks
- Children experience the stigma of having a parent in prison
**In some cases, removing a parent can be beneficial**

**Notes:**
... regardless of the circumstances, a child always experiences the loss of a parent as a traumatic event. Parental absence affects children differently depending on age, but is well-documented as an important life event in child welfare and divorce literature. (Potential outcomes include inability to deal with anger, depression, regression and various anti-social behaviors.)  Also, the trauma can go beyond incarceration – Certainly trauma around the arrest, particularly if the child witnessed it.  But, we know almost nothing about this beyond ethnographic accounts.

Children in stable environments use their emotional energy to master certain age-specific developmental tasks. Yet, if a child’s life circumstances are overwhelms their capacity to cope, emotional survival takes precedence over developmental tasks resulting in delayed development, regression or other maladaptive coping strategies.

Many children also experience the stigma of losing a parent to prison in their n’hood, among their peers, teachers and other family members resulting in feelings of shame and low self-esteem. For other children from n’hoods where incarceration is a more common event, the stigma may be less intense but the needs are not. Typically, there are no special programs in schools or communities for this pop of kids to help them cope with the loss.

In some cases, removing a parent  can be the best thing for the child and family – resulting in more attention to children, more resources and fewer distractions from home life and less fear of or actual violence, or exposure to substance abuse. 

## Children and Families of Prisoners What are the Short-Term Consequences?

**Structural changes**
- How dramatic this change is depends on caregiving arrangements prior to incarceration
**Loss of financial support**
- Incarceration disproportionately affects poorer families
- Limited access to public benefits
**Difficulty maintaining ties**
- Navigating corrections and child welfare systems is complicated

**Notes:**
Structural Changes..... One of the most immediate changes experienced by the family of an incarcerated parent is a change in family composition and in child care arrangements. Most children are not present at the time of their parent’s arrest and parents typically do not volunteer that they have minor children to the police. The result is that many children are informally placed with other family members and do not enter the foster care system following the arrest of a parent. However, placement of a child varies depending on whether the father or mother is arrested and incarcerated. 
One study of incarcerated women with children in the foster care system in New York City showed that for many, the arrest and subsequent incarceration happened after their kids were placed in foster care.  So the loss of the kids was part of the downward spiral and the ultimate incident that led to the incarceration.

Financial Impacts.... Incarceration disproportionately affects families living in poverty and contributes to further financial strain among the families and caregivers left behind. Caregivers often struggle to make ends meet during the period of incarceration. In many cases, they rely on public assistance. Two studies found a similar level of reliance on AFDC payments (now TANF) to meet basic needs: 44 percent of families caring for children of an incarcerated parent reported receiving AFDC.  However, recent welfare reform legislation may severely limit public assistance (i.e., TANF) as a form of support for families both during and following incarceration by capping lifetime eligibility at 60 months, instituting work requirements, and placing restrictions on those who have violated probation or parole and those who have been convicted of certain drug crimes. 

Maintaining ties with family members—between the parents (or other caregivers) and between the parent and child—during the prison term can be difficult. 

## Children of Prisoners What are the Long-term Outcomes?

**Little empirical attention to this question**
**Children of prisoners face a range of negative outcomes**
- Increased likelihood of depression, low self-esteem and disruptive behavior
- Increased likelihood of future involvement in the criminal justice system
**Outcomes are confounded w/ other factors**
- Their lives are commonly characterized by high levels of poverty, parental substance abuse and mental illness and familial involvement in the criminal justice system

**Notes:**
What are the long-term consequences of parental incarceration for children?
Unfortunately, we cannot answer this question with much precision. To date there has been little empirical attention paid to parsing out the causal connection between incarceration of a parent and child outcomes.

What we do know if that these kids – already at high risk along many fronts – experience a range of negative outcomes.
A couple studies have found that children of incarcerated parents are more likely to exhibit low self-esteem, depression, emotional withdraw from friends and family, and disruptive behavior at home and school.
There is also some evidence to suggest that that these children are likely to engage in future delinquent or criminal behavior.

But we cannot say the extent to which these outcomes are a direct result of losing a parent to prison or the nature of family life in the household. 
Further, the degree to which a child is impacted by the incarceration of a parent also rests on a number of variables – the age at which the child is separated from the parent, length of the separation, level of disruption, number and result of previous separation experiences and the availability of other family or community support.

## Families of PrisonersReunification and Reintegration Challenges

- Families are huge support to returning prisoners
- housing, financial support, linkages to jobs, emotional support
- But who is family?
- More likely mother than significant other and/or child
- Rebuilding relationships after separation when family dynamics have changed
- New relationships
- Relocation
- Limited finances
- Resentment
- Lack of contact with child
- More than one child, more than one mother of child
- Shame/stigma

**Notes:**
Next we turn to the impact of incarceration and reentry on families, with special attention to the reunification challenges.  
We are learning thru our RH study, which we’ll talk a bit more about later, that inmates rely heavily on their families after release – for housing, financial support, linkages to jobs, emotional support, etc.  
However, as inmates define “family”  for themselves, it is noteworthy that they are often referring to their mothers not their Sos and children.
For a family who has struggled in an inmate’s absence, many barriers make it difficult for family members to resume support roles when the prisoner returns home. These barriers can include new relationships, relocation, limited finances, and feelings of resentment. 
In addition, the inconsistent or lack of contact with children that occurred while incarcerated may persist on the outside, perhaps because of logistics (e.g., lack of transportation or geographic distance between the child and the release area), parole conditions that eat up a lot of a parolee’s time (such as treatment requirements, day reporting requirements, etc.), or caregiver or other parents’ reluctance to facilitate visits because of shame, resentment, or anger, or the belief that contact with the former prisoner is not in the best interest of the child.  Also, some former prisoners have children with more than one woman, multiplying the complexity of their lives and their ability to regain ground with children.

## Other Issues/Barriers to Reunification

- Child Custody Issues
- Child Support
- ***Reunification is not always the goal
- Family violence

**Notes:**
Additional issues faced by returning prisoners include child custody and child support.  
...With respect to child custody, about 10% of mothers and 2% of fathers have children placed in foster care during their imprisonment... Some parents have their parental rights terminated while incarcerated.

The 1997 Adoption and Safe Families Act authorizes states to initiate termination of parental rights when a child has been in foster care for 15 months over the course of a 22-month period.  (one exception is when children are in the care of relatives)

For those who owe child support, (15-33% of prisoners in RH study), amounts are large, averaging more than $10k. Child support payments usually accumulate during prison term, unless an inmate actively seeks or has help seeking a child support order modification, which does not happen very often, and most parents do not pay while in prison.  I believe ACF just released a couple reports on exactly this topic.

Finally , it’s important to say again that reunification is not always the goal.  In some families there may be a history of family violence where reunification would not be in the interest of the child and family.  Frankly, this issue warrants a lot more attention by both research and practice communities.  

TURN BACK OVER TO AMY 

## Implications for Communities and Service Organizations 

- Large numbers of prisoners are returning to relatively small numbers of neighborhoods
- In Brooklyn, 50% of parolees live in 10% of the neighborhoods
- In Pittsburg, 75% of returning prisoners live in 25% of neighborhoods
- These communities often struggle with high rates of unemployment, crime, drug use, and poverty

**Notes:**
Let’s turn now to the impact of incarceration and reentry on communities, and the role that service providers can play in working with families of incarcerated in their home neighborhoods.  We have mapped prisoner reentry in dozens of communities now, and time after time we find that large numbers of prisoners are returning to relatively small numbers of neighborhoods, many of which are already disadvantaged.

In Brooklyn, 50% of parolees live in 10% of the neighborhoods
In Pittsburg, 75% of returning prisoners live in 25% of neighborhoods

These communities often struggle with high rates of unemployment, crime, drug use, and poverty  

## Implications for Communities and Service Organizations 

- Individuals under criminal justice supervision also receiving services from HS agencies
- Allegheny County: 66% of former prisoners have received services from DHS.  Of those:
- 41% receive drug and alcohol services
- 63% receive mental health treatment
- 20% receive both
- 24% served by more than one DHS program office

**Notes:**
That given, it’s not surprising that individuals under criminal justice supervision are also receiving services from various human services agencies .  [credit Erin Dalton at DHS for analysis]

Allegheny County: 66% of (state) DOC clients receive services from (county) DHS before and/or after incarceration.  Of those:

41% receive drug and alcohol services (27% of total returning)
63% receive mental health treatment (42% of total)
20% receive both
24% served by more than one DHS program office

Not just criminal justice and treatment system overlaps for the individual “offender.”  Rather, we’ve got multiple systems – corrections, treatment, child welfare, child support, health and human services, you name it –all the orgs that are represented here today - working in the same communities often with members of the same families.  

## Criminal Justice and Needs Based Program Populations		 		   Brooklyn, NY

- 2 – 3 Std. Dev.

- 1 – 2 Std. Dev.

- 0 – 1 Std. Dev.

- Mean = 115

**Children Under 18 on PA**

- > 3 Std. Dev.

- -1 – 0 Std. Dev.

- 2 – 3 Std. Dev.

- 1 – 2 Std. Dev.

- 0 – 1 Std. Dev.

- Mean = 28

**Incarcerated Parents ****	****	****            (1 Yr)**

- > 3 Std. Dev.

- -1 – 0 Std. Dev.

**Source: Cadora, Open Society Institute**

**Notes:**
For the FPTH conference, Eric Cadora mapped some of this out in Brooklyn.  He looked at demographics, % of people on TANF, jail and prison admissions, probation and parole caseloads, crime rates, food stamps, Medicaid... The bottom line is that Eric found substantial overlap in highest concentration neighborhoods with many of these factors.

Let’s look at just one set of maps, again this is Brooklyn, NY. On the left is a map of the residences of incarcerated parents.  On the right is a map of children under 18 receiving public assistance.  The darker red and green areas show higher concentrations of these populations.

When we take a closer look at one area in brooklyn, the maps show that the children receiving public assistance are living in the same area as families of incarcerated persons... there is substantial overlap in these two sets of families. 

The point, of course, is that many of these families are being served by multiple agencies – the dad’s on probation and getting treatment, the mom’s on TANF, the child is in trouble in school and has been visited by a child welfare agency. While invisible in some ways, these families are not unknown to any of our systems.

This suggests the need for more coordination among service providers so that all the needs of these families are met...

## Challenges Are Great... But So Too are the Opportunities

**Momentum is Encouraging**
- Today’s conference
- Federal attn/grants re: healthy marriage, responsible fatherhood, mentoring children of prisoners
- Second Chance Act
*Re-Entry Policy Council* Children and Families Project
- Pittsburg Initiative and others...
- Returning Home Study
- ...MORE

**Notes:**
So where are we?  Well I think the challenges are great but so too are the opportunities.  There is a lot of momentum in this area.  Today’s conference is symbolic of that fact.  Other signs:
-- The federal gov’t, and HHS in particular, is focusing a number of grants on healthy marriage and responsible fatherhood with emphasis on incarcerated populations, as well as mentoring children of prisoners.
-- The Second Chance Act – which has yet to pass but enjoys broad bi-partisan support in Congress – directs some attention to children of prisoners 
-- The CSG RPC has a special project on children and families.  They are working with a handful of states focusing on DOC and human service org. leadership who are collaborating on improving outcomes for this popn.
-- In Pittsburg – and I’m sure in other places – a private foundation (Pittsburg Child Guidance Foundation) is taking on an initiative to study and advocate for children of prisoners.
-- And the UI’s longitudinal study of returning prisoners in 4 states is currently analyzing the ways attachment to children impacts a number of factors postrelease outcomes for returning prisoners and their families.  
+++++++++What factors predict strong and weak attachment to children after release? How does attachment to children change over time? Does attachment to children impact postrelease outcomes for returning fathers and mothers? How much, and in what ways, can attachment to children be improved during and after prison? For all returning prisoners, does parenthood alone impact reentry experiences? Or is attachment to children the key factor?

## Research OpportunitiesKey Questions...

**What are the effects of:**
**Parental criminality, arrest, incarceration, reentry and community supervision on children?**
**Parental involvement and familial relationships on adult recidivism, employment, health and other outcomes?**
**Marriage on individual and child outcomes? **
**High rates of incarceration on family and community stability?  **
**Various human services and corrections policies on children and families?**

**Notes:**
BACK TO JANINE?
The momentum on topic is great, but there is still a lot to do.  In terms of research opportunities, there are a number of research questions such as [bullets]
++++
ADDITIONAL TEXT IF YOU WANT IT.  Absence of  Basic Research on Children and Families of Prisoners. There is not a comprehensive program of basic research on children and families with incarcerated parents, and thus, there are many unanswered questions. Some of these questions are: the effects of parental criminality and parental absence during incarceration on children; the effect of parental involvement and familial relationships on adult recidivism; and the effect of high rates of incarceration on family and community stability. 

Also, the issue should not just narrowly focus on incarceration.  We also need to understand the impact of arrest on children (particularly if a child witnesses it, but even beyond that), how court proceedings affect children and how they are perceived in terms of anxiety and trauma for children.  Finally, we also should examine the impact of having a parent on probation or parole and the stress that has on children and it’s short- and long-term consequences.

Research on Policy Impacts.  There has been little research on the effect of human services and corrections policies on children and families and on re-unification efforts.  Program provisions that are likely to effect individual and family outcomes include time limits for termination of parental rights, restrictions on the receipt of welfare and public housing by convicted drug felons, non-modification of child support orders while a non-custodial parent is in prison, and mandatory sentencing requirements for certain crimes.

## Research Opportunities...Will Require Prospective, Longitudinal Studies that 

**Follow families at risk**
**Develop and use multidisciplinary approaches **
**Use developmentally appropriate, standardized measures for assessing children and adolescents**
**Address the effects of mother versus father incarceration, cultural and ethnic backgrounds, and individual, family, contextual and cultural processes**

**Notes:**
Answering these kinds of questions would involve undertaking prospective, longitudinal studies that: 1) follow families at risk of incarceration to determine the impact of incarceration, beyond other risk factors such as poverty and exposure to violence; 2) develop and use multidisciplinary approaches; 3) use developmentally appropriate, standardized measures for assessing children; and 4) address the effects of mother versus father incarceration, cultural and ethnic backgrounds, and individual, family, contextual and cultural processes.

[bullets]

## Policy Opportunities

- Given large and growing vulnerable population at stake
- Better prepare prisoners for release
- Support family ties while incarcerated
- Screen for flags when reunification is not the goal
- Given that multiple systems already work with many of the families
- Strategically coordinate and collaborate to achieve shared goals of improved family well-being and community health

**Notes:**
Finally, there are a number of policy opportunities to keep in mind.

[bullets]

## To access the papers commissioned for the “From Prison to Home” conference, see www.urban.org or http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/prison2home02/index.htm

To receive email updates of JPC research, send an email to jpc@ui.urban.org

**To receive email updates of JPC research, send an email to jpc@ui.urban.org**

**URBAN INSTITUTE**
- Justice Policy Center

**Notes:**
All the papers, maps, etc can be accessed on both the UI and HHS websites per above.

## Parents in the Criminal Justice System.... At a Glance

- Source: Mumola (2002), “Incarcerated Parents and Their Children.” Presentation at the National Center for Children and Families. 10/31/02

**Notes:**
The majority of adults serving time in state prisons are parents to minor children. Over half of state prisoners had at least one minor child and one-third had more than one child.

While the percent of prisoners with children has not changed significantly in the last decade, the number of children has. There are now nearly 1.5 million children with a parent in prison, up from 936,000 in 1991. (I’ll talk more about this later.)

Two factors contributed to the increase in the number of children with a parent in prison: 
The growth in the prison population over the past decade and
 specifically, the growth in the female prison population. The number of female prisoners is a small but growing number – Since 1990 the number of female prisoners has grown faster than male prisoners. Per capita number of women in correctional institutions grew by nearly 50 percent since 1990.