U.S. Department of Justice 

Office of Justice Programs 

Bureau of Justice Statistics

Special Report

MAY 2016 NCJ 248766

Aging of the State Prison 

Population, 1993–2013

E. Ann Carson, Ph.D., BJS Statistician, and William J. Sabol, Ph.D., former BJS Director

The number of prisoners sentenced to more than 

1 year under the jurisdiction of state correctional 

authorities increased 55% over the past two decades, 

from 857,700 in 1993 to 1,325,300 in 2013. During the 

same period, the number of state prisoners age 55 or older 

increased 400%, from 3% of the total state prison population 

in 1993 to 10% in 2013 (figure 1). Between 1993 and 2003, 

the majority of the growth occurred among prisoners 

ages 40 to 54, while the number of those age 55 or older 

increased faster from 2003 to 2013. In 1993, the median age 

of prisoners was 30; by 2013, the median age was 36. The 

changing age structure in the U.S. state prison population 

has implications for the future management and care 

of inmates.

Two factors contributed to the aging of state prisoners 

between 1993 and 2013: (1) a greater proportion of 

prisoners were sentenced to, and serving longer periods 

in state prison, predominantly for violent offenses, and 

(2) admissions of older persons increased. The number of

persons age 55 or older admitted to state prison increased

308% between 1993 and 2013, from 1% of state prison

HIGHLIGHTS  The number of prisoners age 55 or older sentenced to 

more than 1 year in state prison increased 400% between 

1993 and 2013, from 26,300 (3% of the total state prison 

population) in 1993 to 131,500 (10% of the total population) 

in 2013.

 Between 1993 and 2003, prisoners ages 45 to 49 grew 

the fastest, while those age 55 or older grew the fastest 

between 2003 to 2013.

 In 2013, the median age of state prisoners was 36 years 

compared to 30 years in 1993 and 34 years in 2003.

 The imprisonment rate for prisoners age 55 or older 

sentenced to more than 1 year in state prison increased 

from 49 per 100,000 U.S. residents of the same age in 1993 

to 154 per 100,000 in 2013.

 Between 1993 and 2013, more than 65% of prisoners 

age 55 or older were serving time in state prison for violent 

offenses, compared to a maximum of 58% for other age 

groups sentenced for violent offenses.

 More than four times as many prisoners age 55 or older 

were admitted to state prisons in 2013 (25,700) than in 

1993 (6,300).

 The median age at admission increased from 29 years in 

1993 to 32 years in 2003 and 2013.

 Forty percent of state prisoners age 55 or older on 

December 31, 2013, had been imprisoned for at least 

10 years, compared to 9% in 1993.

 Forty percent of prisoners age 55 or older on 

December 31, 2013, had been admitted to prison after they 

were at least age 55, and 60% turned 55 while in prison.

Sentenced state prisoners

Year

0

200,000

400,000

600,000

800,000

1,000,000

55 or older

40–54

39 or younger

1993 2003 2013

Figure 1

Sentenced state prisoners, by age, December 31, 1993, 2003, 

and 2013

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year under the jurisdiction 

of state correctional authorities. See appendix table 1 for standard errors of the 

1993 estimates.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 

2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991; and 

National Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 2

admissions in 1993 to 4% in 2013. Admissions of persons 

age 24 or younger decreased 11% over the same period. At 

yearend 2013, almost 40% of state prisoners age 55 or older 

had served at least 10 years on a new court commitment. 

Sixty percent of these prisoners were admitted before age 

55, many as part of the growth in 45 to 54 year olds between 

1993 and 2003, and aged into the oldest age group while in 

prison. In comparison, less than 20% of state prisoners ages 

30 to 49 at yearend 2013 had served 10 years or more.

This report uses data from the Bureau of Justice Statistics’ 

(BJS) National Corrections Reporting Program (NCRP), 

National Prisoner Statistics (NPS) program, and the 1991 

and 2004 Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities 

(SISCF). The NCRP and NPS are annual collections of 

administrative data on prisoners from state departments of 

corrections, while the SISCF is a periodic collection based on 

interviews a sample of state prisoners.

Growth of the state prison population

The number of state prisoners age 55 or older doubled 

each decade between 1993 and 2013

As BJS has previously reported, growth of the state prison 

population slowed in the 2000s, compared to the 1990s.1 For 

example, between 1993 and 2003, the number of sentenced 

prisoners (those sentenced to more than 1 year under the 

jurisdiction of state correctional authorities) increased 

46%, from 857,700 to 1.3 million (figure 2). From 2003 

1 See the Prisoners series of reports for 1994, 1998, 2000, 2009, and 2013.

Sentenced state prisoners

Age 

0

10,000

20,000

30,000

40,000

50,000

2013

2003

1993

18 24 30 36 42 48 54 60 66 72

Figure 2

Sentenced state prisoners, by age, December 31, 1993, 2003, 

and 2013

Note: Counts based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year under the 

jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. 

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 

2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991; and 

National Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013.

Table 1

Sentenced state prisoners, by age, December 31, 1993, 2003, and 2013

1993 2003 2013

Age Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

Total* 857,675 100% 1,256,442 100% 1,325,305 100%

18–19 27,500 3.2 22,800 1.8 14,300 1.1

20–24 164,700 19.2 197,100 15.7 163,000 12.3

25–29 208,400 24.3 216,800 17.2 213,300 16.1

30–34 180,400 21.0 203,200 16.2 218,000 16.5

35–39 117,900 13.7 195,900 15.6 179,900 13.6

40–44 72,800 8.5 179,300 14.3 155,200 11.7

45–49 34,800 4.1 117,700 9.4 136,600 10.3

50–54 18,700 2.2 62,700 5.0 112,200 8.5

55–59 12,600 1.5 31,300 2.5 68,000 5.1

60–64 7,700 0.9 15,000 1.2 34,400 2.6

65 or older 6,000 0.7 12,000 1.0 29,100 2.2

40–54 126,300 14.7% 359,700 28.6% 404,100 30.5%

55 or older 26,300 3.1 58,300 4.6 131,500 9.9

Mean age 31.7 years 35.2 years 37.8 years

Median age 30 34 36

Note: Counts based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year under the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. Detail may not sum to total due to rounding. See 

appendix table 2 for standard errors of the 1993 estimates.

*Includes prisoners age 17 or younger.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991; and National 

Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 3

Percent change

-50

0

50

100

150

200

250

2003–2013

1993–2003

65 or 

older

18–19 20–24 25–29 30–34 35–39 40–44 45–49 50–54 55–59 60–64

Age on December 31

Figure 3

Percent change in sentenced state prisoners, by age at 

yearend, 1993–2003 and 2003–2013

Note: Percent changes based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year under 

the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. 

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 

2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991; and 

National Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013.

Percent contribution to total change

-80

-40

0

40

80

120

55 or older

40–54

39 or younger

1993–2003 2003–2013

Period

Figure 4

Percent contribution to total change in sentenced state 

prisoners, by age at yearend, 1993–2003 and 2003–2013

Note: Percents based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year under the 

jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. 

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 

2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991; and 

National Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013.

to 2013, growth slowed to 5%, and prison populations 

in several states decreased.2 In comparison, the number 

of prisoners age 55 or older more than doubled every 

10 years, an increase of about 120% in each decade (26,300 

in 1993, 58,300 in 2003, and 131,500 in 2013) (table 1). By 

2013, prisoners age 55 or older accounted for 9.9% of the 

sentenced population in state prisons, up from 3.1% in 1993.

Between 1993 and 2003, the fastest growing portion of the 

state prison population was inmates ages 45 to 49, which 

more than tripled in size (figure 3). At the same time, 

prisoners in younger age groups declined. The number of 

prisoners ages 35 to 44 increased 97% between 1993 and 

2003, then declined by 11% (40,100 prisoners) between 2003 

and 2013. Since 2003, prisoners age 55 or older have been the 

fastest growing age group.

2 See Prisoners in 2012: Trends in Admissions and Releases, 1991–2012 (NCJ 

243920, BJS web, November 2013) and Prisoners in 2013 (NCJ 247282, BJS 

web, September 2014).

Prisoners age 55 or older accounted for most of the growth 

in the prison population from 2003 to 2013 (106% of 

68,900 prisoners) (figure 4). While prisoners ages 40 to 54 

accounted for an additional 64% of the increase, the total 

increase was offset by a decline of 69% in the number of 

prisoners age 39 or younger. In comparison, between 1993 

and 2003, the increase included prisoners age 55 or older 

(8% of 398,800 prisoners), age 39 or younger (34%), and ages 

40 to 54 (59%). (See appendix table 6 for a more detailed 

distribution of the proportion of total change.)

By 2013, the median age of the state sentenced prison 

population was age 36, up from age 30 in 1993. The average 

age of state prisoners increased by 3.5 years in the decade 

between 1993 and 2003 and 2.6 years between 2003 and 

2013 (age 32 in 1993, age 35 in 2003, and age 38 in 2013).
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 4

Table 2

Imprisonment rate of sentenced state prisoners per 100,000 

U.S. adult residents, by age, December 31, 1993, 2003, 

and 2013

Imprisonment rate per 

100,000 U.S. adult residentsa

Age 1993 2003 2013

Total 448 575 543

18–19 394 276 167

20–24 886 945 712

25–29 1,080 1,130 979

30–34 813 995 1,017

35–39 541 931 910

40–44 374 782 748

45–49 213 538 650

50–54 144 326 497

55–59 117 194 318

60–64 75 122 188

65 or older 18 33 64

40–54 259 562 628

55 or older 49 90 154

Number of prisonersb 857,675 1,256,442 1,325,305

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year under the jurisdiction 

of state correctional authorities. Imprisonment rates calculated per 100,000 U.S. 

residents age 18 or older. 

aBased on U.S. residents age 18 or older as of January 1 of the subsequent year.

bIncludes prisoners age 17 or younger.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 

2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991; National 

Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013; and U.S. Census Bureau, National 

monthly postcensal resident estimates, 1990–2000 (1993), National intercensal 

estimates, 2000–2010 (2003), and Postcensal population estimate, 2013.

Persons age 55 or older made up a larger percentage 

of the U.S. resident population than the state prison 

population

The U.S. resident population also aged between 1993 and 

2013 (figure 5). Persons age 55 or older accounted for 

28% to 35% of the resident population in each decade. As 

the proportion of U.S. residents age 49 or younger decreased 

from 2003 to 2013, persons age 50 or older increased, 

contributing to a leveling of the distribution of persons in 

younger age groups in the U.S. resident population.

The age distribution of state prisoners also leveled between 

1993 and 2013. Prisoners age 39 or younger were still the 

majority in 2013 (60%), while residents of the same age 

accounted for 39% of the general population. Residents age 

55 or older made up 35% of the general population in 2013, 

compared to 10% of state prisoners.

If the increase in older prisoners over time was due solely 

to the growth in the number of older U.S. residents, the 

expected result would be to see no change in the age-specific 

imprisonment rates between 1993 and 2013. Instead, the rate 

of imprisonment for those age 55 or older more than tripled, 

from 49 per 100,000 U.S. residents of the same age in 1993 

to 154 per 100,000 in 2013 (table 2). In comparison, the rate 

65 or older

60–64

55–59

50–54

45–49

40–44

35–39

30–34

25–29

20–24

18–19

U.S. residents Prisoners

3.6

9.7

10.1

11.6

11.4

10.1

8.5

6.8

5.7

5.3

17.2

3.2

19.2

24.3

21.0

13.7

8.5

4.1

2.2

1.5

0.9

0.7

December 31, 1993

Figure 5

Percent distribution of U.S. residents and sentenced state 

prison populations, by age, December 31, 1993, 2003, and 

2013

Note: Percents based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year under the 

jurisdiction of state correctional authorities and U.S. residents age 18 or older. 

See appendix table 2 for standard errors of the 1993 estimates.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 

2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991; National 

Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013; and U.S. Census Bureau, 

Intercensal population estimates, 1993 and 2003, and Postcensal population 

estimate, 2013.

65 or older

60–64

55–59

50–54

45–49

40–44

35–39

30–34

25–29

20–24

18–19

U.S. residents Prisoners

3.8

9.5

8.8

9.3

9.6

10.5

10.0

8.8

7.4

5.7

16.5

1.8

15.7

17.3

16.2

15.6

14.3

9.4

5.0

2.5

1.2

1.0

December 31, 2003

65 or older

60–64

55–59

50–54

45–49

40–44

35–39

30–34

25–29

20–24

18–19

U.S. residents Prisoners

3.5

9.4

8.9

8.8

8.1

8.5

8.6

9.3

8.8

7.5

18.7

1.1

12.3

16.1

16.5

13.6

11.7

10.3

8.5

5.1

2.6

2.2

December 31, 2013

of imprisonment for those ages 18 to 24 decreased 25% over 

the same period, from 752 per 100,000 in 1993 to 563 per 

100,000 in 2013. State prisoners ages 25 to 34 had the highest 

imprisonment rates across both decades, with nearly 1% of 

U.S. residents in this age group serving time in state prison 

at yearend 2013.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 5

Almost a third of the oldest offenders in 2013 were serving sentences of life or death

In 2013, 35% of the 29,100 prisoners age 65 or older were 

under the jurisdiction of the three largest state prison 

systems (13% in California, 12% in Texas, and 9% in Florida). 

However, in each of these states, prisoners age 65 or older 

made up less than 3% of the total prison population (not 

shown). In 2013, males accounted for 97% of prisoners age 

65 or older. Sixty-one percent of males in this age group 

were non-Hispanic white, 23% were non-Hispanic black, 

and 15% were Hispanic (table 3). Almost three-quarters of 

the female state prisoners age 65 or older were white (73%), 

18% were black, and 8% were Hispanic.

In 2013, 31% of state prisoners age 65 or older were serving 

life or death sentences. An estimated 6,300 state prisoners 

age 65 or older were sentenced to life imprisonment 

(including those with and without the possibility of parole and 

those sentenced to life plus additional years) for violent crimes 

(30% of violent offenders in this age group). Older offenders 

can have longer criminal histories than younger offenders, 

making it possible for some of these life sentences to be the 

result of enhanced prison terms from multiple strikes laws. 

A third of state prisoners age 65 or older (33%) had served 5 

years or less of their current term at yearend 2013, while 50% 

(about 14,700 prisoners) had been in prison for more than 

10 years.

Estimated number of prisoners 29,100

Age

Mean 69.8 years

Median 68

Sex

Male 96.6%

Female 3.4

Sex by race

Male

Whitea 60.7%

Blacka 23.2

Hispanic 14.5

Other racesa,b 1.5

Female

Whitea 73.4%

Blacka 17.9

Hispanic 7.6

Other racesa,b 1.1

Sentence length 100%

Less than life or death 68.8

Lifec 30.6

Death 0.6

Most serious offense by sentence length

Violent offenses 100%

Less than life or death 69.1

Lifec 30.4

Death 0.6

Estimated number of prisoners 20,600

Property offenses 100%

Less than life or death 92.6

Lifec 7.4

Death 0.0

Estimated number of prisoners 1,700

Drug offenses 100%

Less than life or death 96.0

Lifec 4.0

Death 0.0

Estimated number of prisoners 1,400

Time served to date 100%

12 months or less 9.9

13–24 months 7.6

25–36 months 6.4

37–60 months 9.3

61–120 months 16.5

121 months or more 50.4

Note: Counts based on prisoners age 65 or older on December 31, 2013, 

who were sentenced to more than 1 year under the jurisdiction of state 

correctional authorities. Detail may not sum to total due to missing data and 

rounding. See Methodology.

aExcludes persons of Hispanic or Latino origin. 

bIncludes American Indians and Alaska Natives; Asians, Native Hawaiians, and 

Other Pacific Islanders; and persons of two or more races.

cIncludes sentences of life, life without parole, and life plus additional years.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 

2013; and National Corrections Reporting Program, 2013.

Table 3

Characteristics of sentenced state prisoners age 65 or older, December 31, 2013

Characteristic Percent Characteristic Percent
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 6

Table 4

Sentenced state prisoners, by age and sex, December 31, 1993, 2003, and 2013

1993 2003 2013

Age at yearend Male Female Male Female Male Female

Total* 809,190 48,485 1,173,641 82,801 1,233,724 91,581

18–19 27,000 600 22,000 900 13,800 500

20–24 157,500 7,300 187,400 9,700 153,300 9,700

25–29 195,600 12,700 204,000 12,800 196,700 16,600

30–34 168,800 11,600 188,500 14,700 200,700 17,300

35–39 109,800 8,100 179,400 16,500 166,600 13,300

40–44 68,600 4,200 165,100 14,200 143,600 11,600

45–49 32,800 2,000 109,700 8,000 126,800 9,900

50–54 17,700 1,000 59,200 3,500 105,400 6,900

55–59 12,100 500 29,900 1,400 64,700 3,300

60–64 7,400 200 14,400 600 32,900 1,500

65 or older 5,900 200 11,600 400 28,100 1,000

40–54 119,100 7,200 334,000 25,700 375,800 28,300

55 or older 25,400 900 55,900 2,400 125,700 5,800

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year under the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. Detail may not sum to total due to rounding. 

See appendix table 3 for standard errors of the 1993 estimates.

*Includes prisoners age 17 or younger.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991; and National 

Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013.

Characteristics of the aging state prison population

Between 1993 and 2003, both males and females ages 

40 to 54 increased by more than 100%

Changes in the age distribution of male and female 

sentenced prisoners generally followed a pattern that was 

similar to the overall prison population. The number of 

males and females ages 40 to 54 increased at a greater 

pace between 1993 and 2003 than between 2003 and 

2013, while the number of both males and females age 55 

or older more than quadrupled between 1993 and 2013 

(table 4, figure 6). The number of males age 39 or younger 

in state prison on December 31, 2013, decreased 6% (50,200 

prisoners) from December 31, 2003, similar to a 5% increase 

(2,800 prisoners) for females.

Figure 6

Percent change in sentenced state prisoners, by age and sex, 1993–2003 and 2003–2013

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year under the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. 

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991; and National 

Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013.

Percent change, male

Age at yearend

65 or 

older

18–19 20–24 25–29 30–34 35–39 40–44 45–49 50–54 55–59 60–64 -80

0

80

160

240

320

2003–2013

1993–2003

Percent change, female

Age at yearend

65 or 

older

18–19 20–24 25–29 30–34 35–39 40–44 45–49 50–54 55–59 60–64 -80

0

80

160

240

320

18–1920–2425–2930–3435–39

2003–2013

1993–2003
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 7

From 1993 to 2013, the number of female state prisoners 

in all age categories increased at a faster rate than males. 

Sentenced female prisoners age 20 or older increased at least 

30% in each age category, as did males age 35 or older. The 

total number of females in state prisons increased 89% over 

the 20-year period, compared to 53% for males. Between 

1993 and 2003, growth in the number of prisoners ages 40 

to 54 accounted for 59% of the total change in the male state 

prison population (up 214,900) and 54% of the change for 

females (up 18,500) (figure 7). An increase in the number 

of prisoners age 55 or older accounted for 8% of the change 

for males and 4% of the change for females during the 

same decade.

A total of 69,800 sentenced male state prisoners age 55 or 

older were added between 2003 and 2013, more than twice 

as many as were added between 1993 and 2003 (up 30,500). 

This increase offset the decrease of 50,200 males age 39 or 

younger over the same period. The number of female state 

prisoners age 55 or older accounted for 39% of the overall 

growth in females between 2003 and 2013, compared to 

increases in females age 39 or younger (33% of the total 

increase) and ages 40 to 54 (30%).

Black state prisoners age 55 or older increased more than 

150% between 2003 and 2013

The age distributions for non-Hispanic black, non-Hispanic 

white, and Hispanic state prisoners showed different patterns 

of change during the two decades. Between 1993 and 

2003, the number of white, black, and Hispanic prisoners 

ages 40 to 54 and those 55 or older more than doubled 

(figure 8, table 5). In particular, the number of blacks and 

Hispanics ages 40 to 54 tripled from 1993 to 2003 (blacks 

Note: Percents based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year under the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. 

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991; and National 

Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013.

Figure 7

Percent contribution to total change in sentenced state prisoners, by age and sex, 1993–2003 and 2003–2013

Percent

-120

-80

-40

0

40

80

120

1993–2003 2003–2013

55 or older

40–54

39 or younger

Males

Percent

-120

-80

-40

0

40

80

120

1993–2003 2003–2013

Females

55 or older

40–54

39 or younger

Note: Percent changes based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year under the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. Detail may not sum to total due to 

rounding. 

*Excludes persons of Hispanic or Latino origin.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991 and 2004; and 

National Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013.

Figure 8

Percent change in sentenced state prisoners, by race, 1993–2003 and 2003–2013

Age at yearend

Black* 

Hispanic

White* 1993–2003

-100

-50

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

55 or

older

18–19 20–24 25–29 30–34 35–39 40–44 45–49 50–54

Percent change

Age at yearend

2003–2013

-100

-50

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400 Hispanic

Black*

White*

55 or

older

18–19 20–24 25–29 30–34 35–39 40–44 45–49 50–54

Percent change
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 8

Table 5

Sentenced state prisoners, by age, race, and Hispanic origin, December 31, 1993, 2003, and 2013

1993 2003 2013

Age at yearend Whitea Blacka Hispanic Whitea Blacka Hispanic Whitea Blacka Hispanic

Totalb 302,600 380,900 150,500 423,200 503,000 254,300 468,600 497,000 274,200

18–19 6,500 15,700 4,700 6,000 10,700 5,200 2,700 7,100 3,500

20–24 51,600 77,500 31,600 55,400 81,500 47,500 41,900 70,700 37,700

25–29 67,100 96,400 40,600 59,700 90,100 53,400 67,900 81,600 49,900

30–34 63,600 82,000 29,100 65,000 81,400 44,900 73,900 79,500 50,900

35–39 41,200 52,400 20,600 68,700 79,000 37,700 61,400 66,400 41,000

40–44 29,800 29,900 10,600 68,600 71,900 29,400 58,800 55,600 31,300

45–49 17,500 9,700 6,200 45,500 47,300 17,900 54,400 51,100 23,600

50–54 10,300 5,000 2,800 25,000 23,700 9,400 47,300 41,800 17,000

55–59 6,800 3,000 2,400 14,500 9,600 4,500 28,700 25,000 9,800

60–64 4,300 2,300 800 7,800 3,700 2,200 15,500 11,100 5,000

65 or older 3,000 2,700 200 6,500 2,800 1,700 16,000 6,500 4,200

40–54 57,700 44,600 19,600 139,100 142,900 56,700 160,400 148,500 71,800

55 or older 14,100 8,000 3,400 28,800 16,100 8,400 60,200 42,500 18,900

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year under the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. Detail may not sum to total due to rounding. 

See appendix table 3 for standard errors of the 1993 estimates.

aExcludes persons of Hispanic or Latino origin.

bIncludes prisoners age 17 or younger.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991 and 2004; and 

National Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013.

up 98,300 prisoners, Hispanics up 37,100 prisoners). The 

growth in prisoners age 40 to 54 slowed for all three racial 

groups between 2003 and 2013, but the number of white, 

black, and Hispanic prisoners age 55 or older doubled. The 

number of black prisoners age 55 or older increased from 

16,100 in 2003 to 42,500 in 2013 (up 164%), while Hispanics 

grew by 125%. In contrast, the total number of blacks 

sentenced to more than 1 year in state prison at yearend 

2013 (497,000) was a 1% decrease from 2003 (503,000). 

Declines in the number of black prisoners age 44 or younger 

accounted for all of the decrease among blacks between 2003 

and 2013.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 9

Percent

0

20

40

60

80

24 or younger 25–34 35–44 45–54 55 or older

Age at yearend

2013

2003

1993

FIGURE 9b

Sentenced state prisoners held for property offenses, by age, 

December 31, 1993, 2003, and 2013

State prison inmates age 55 or older had a higher 

percentage of violent offenders than all other age groups

Between 1993 and 2013, the percentage of sentenced state 

prisoners with a violent crime as their most serious offense 

increased from 46% to 53%. Over the same period, more 

than 65% of state prisoners age 55 or older were sentenced 

for a violent offense (65% in 1993, 68% in 2003, and 66% in 

2013) (figure 9a). This was the highest percentage of all age 

groups that were in prison for violent offenses in 1993, 2003, 

and 2013.

The proportion of prisoners age 55 or older convicted of 

property crimes (11% to 12%) remained stable from 1993 to 

2013 (figure 9b), but the growth in the number of prisoners 

age 55 or older meant that five times as many prisoners 

age 55 or older were imprisoned for property crimes in 

2013 (16,200) than in 1993 (2,900). (See appendix table 9 

for the full offense distribution.) Sentenced drug offenders 

accounted for a decreasing proportion and number of state 

prisoners in all age groups from 2003 to 2013, except for 

those age 55 or older (figure 9c). As with property crimes, 

the overall growth in the number of persons in this age 

group contributed to an increase in drug offenders age 55 or 

older between 1993 (4,100) and 2013 (13,600), despite the 

decline in sentencing for these crimes (16% of all prisoners 

age 55 or older in 1993, compared to 10% in 2013). In 2013, 

Percent

0

20

40

60

80

24 or younger 25–34 35–44 45–54 55 or older

Age at yearend

2013

2003

1993

FIGURE 9c

Sentenced state prisoners held for drug offenses, by age, 

December 31, 1993, 2003, and 2013

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year under the jurisdiction of 

state correctional authorities by the most serious convicted offense. Detail may 

not sum to total due to rounding. See appendix table 4 for standard errors of the 

1993 estimates.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 

2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991; and 

National Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013.

Percent

0

20

40

60

80

2013

2003

1993

24 or younger 25–34 35–44 45–54 55 or older

Age at yearend

FIGURE 9a

Sentenced state prisoners held for violent offenses, by age, 

December 31, 1993, 2003, and 2013
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 10

Imprisonment rates by age and sex

At yearend 1993, male (2,026 per 100,000 U.S. male residents) 

and female (132 per 100,000 U.S. female residents) prisoners 

ages 25 to 29 had the highest imprisonment rates (table 6). In 

2003, this age group also had the highest imprisonment rate 

for males (2,091 per 100,000). However, females ages 35 to 39 

accounted for the greatest number of prisoners per capita 

(158 per 100,000). In 2013, males and females ages 30 to 34 

experienced the highest rate of imprisonment (1,866 per 

100,000 males and 163 per 100,000 females). Despite increases 

in both male and female state prisoners age 65 or older, this 

age group had the lowest imprisonment rate in each of the 

3 years examined.

Table 6

Imprisonment rate of sentenced state prisoners per 100,000 U.S. adult residents, by age and sex , December 31, 1993, 

2003, and 2013

1993 2003 2013

Age Male Female Male Female Male Female

Totala,b 881 49 1,108 74 1,039 73

18–19 753 18 514 22 312 13

20–24 1,667 80 1,751 96 1,307 87

25–29 2,026 132 2,091 135 1,779 155

30–34 1,527 104 1,830 146 1,866 163

35–39 1,013 74 1,700 158 1,689 134

40–44 715 43 1,450 123 1,395 111

45–49 409 24 1,016 72 1,217 93

50–54 280 15 630 35 951 60

55–59 234 9 383 17 623 30

60–64 156 4 245 9 375 16

65 or older 44 1 77 2 141 4

40–54 498 29 1,058 79 1,182 87

55 or older 109 3 194 7 321 13

Number of prisonersb 809,190 48,485 1,173,641 82,801 1,233,724 91,581

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year under the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. Imprisonment rates calculated per 100,000 

U.S. residents age 18 or older of the same sex and age. 

aBased on U.S. residents age 18 or older as of January 1 of the subsequent year.

bIncludes prisoners age 17 or younger.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991; National 

Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013; and U.S. Census Bureau, National monthly postcensal resident estimates, 1990–2000 (1993), National intercensal 

estimates, 2000–2010 (2003), and Postcensal population estimate, 2013.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 11

Among Hispanic prisoners, those ages 25 to 29 had the 

highest imprisonment rates in 1993 and 2003, while those 

ages 30 to 34 had the highest rates in 2013 (table 7). 

Offenders ages 30 to 34 had the highest imprisonment rates 

across all races at yearend 2013 with 602 prisoners per 100,000 

non-Hispanic white U.S. residents of the same age, compared 

to 2,893 per 100,000 non-Hispanic blacks and 1,155 per 

100,000 Hispanics. Persons age 65 or older of all races had the 

lowest imprisonment rates in 1993, 2003, and 2013. Between 

2003 and 2013, rates for whites increased for all groups except 

for those ages 18 to 24, and rates decreased for blacks age 44 

or younger and for Hispanics age 49 or younger.

Table 7

Imprisonment rate of sentenced state prisoners per 100,000 U.S. adult residents, by age, race, and Hispanic origin, 

December 31, 1993, 2003, and 2013

1993 2003 2013

Age Whitea Blacka Hispanic Whitea Blacka Hispanic Whitea Blacka Hispanic

Totalb,c 206 1,810 910 274 2,018 962 294 1,704 741

18–19 136 1,534 509 116 903 384 56 568 191

20–24 404 3,025 1,340 434 2,809 1,270 330 2,057 798

25–29 498 3,838 1,668 520 3,592 1,432 546 2,802 1,129

30–34 394 3,054 1,211 511 3,142 1,263 602 2,893 1,155

35–39 253 2,027 1,016 496 2,989 1,191 543 2,647 1,000

40–44 201 1,378 667 428 2,588 1,058 470 2,136 820

45–49 136 595 520 286 1,857 811 404 1,944 705

50–54 99 393 313 174 1,129 561 306 1,537 589

55–59 79 282 329 116 619 365 188 1,010 432

60–64 52 247 133 80 320 241 115 567 295

65 or older 10 103 13 22 93 80 45 164 120

40–54 151 880 534 300 1,925 851 387 1,868 715

55 or older 31 174 123 55 284 198 93 509 256

Number of prisonersc 302,600 380,900 150,500 423,200 503,000 254,300 468,600 497,000 274,200

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year under the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. Imprisonment rates are calculated per 100,000 adult 

U.S. residents of the same race or Hispanic origin and age. 

aExcludes persons of Hispanic or Latino origin.

bBased on U.S. residents age 18 or older.

cIncludes prisoners age 17 or younger.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991 and 2004; 

National Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013; and U.S. Census Bureau, National monthly postcensal resident estimates, 1990–2000 (1993), National 

intercensal estimates, 2000–2010 (2003), and Postcensal population estimate, 2013.

Imprisonment rates by age and race
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 12

Age at yearend

0

10

20

30

40

24 or younger 25–34 35–44 45–54 55 or older

2013

2003

1993

Percent

FIGURE 10

Percent of sentenced state prisoners held for murder or 

nonnegligent manslaughter, by age, December 31, 1993, 

2003, and 2013

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year under the jurisdiction 

of state correctional authorities with murder or nonnegligent manslaughter as 

the most serious convicted crime. See appendix table 4 for standard errors of the 

1993 estimates.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 

2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991; and 

National Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013.

Percent

0

10

20

30

40

24 or younger 25–34 35–44 45–54 55 or older

2013

2003

1993

Age at yearend

FIGURE 11

Percent of sentenced state prisoners held for rape or sexual 

assault, by age, December 31, 1993, 2003, and 2013

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year under the jurisdiction 

of state correctional authorities with sexual assault, including rape, as the most 

serious convicted crime. See appendix table 4 for standard errors of the 1993 

estimates.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 

2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991; and 

National Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013.

48% of prisoners age 55 or older were serving sentences for 

murder or nonnegligent manslaughter and rape or sexual 

assault, compared to 31% of those ages 45 to 54 and 27% 

of those ages 35 to 44 (figure 10, figure 11). At least 27% 

of state prisoners age 55 or older were imprisoned for rape 

or sexual assault in 1993, 2003, and 2013, which was more 

than double the percentage of prisoners in age groups of 

44 or younger.

Within offenses, there was an increase in the proportion of 

older prisoners over time. Prisoners age 55 or older made 

up 9% of all sexual offenders in state prisons in 1993 and 

21% in 2013. Similarly, the proportion of prisoners age 55 

or older who were sentenced for murder or nonnegligent 

manslaughter increased, from 7% in 1993 to 16% in 2013. 

Prisoners in this age group accounted for 12% of all violent 

offenders in state prison on December 31, 2013, up from 4% 

in 1993 and 7% in 2003.

Sources of growth in the older prison population

Growth in the number of older state prisoners can occur 

through increased admissions of older persons, longer time 

spent serving sentences that permit prisoners to age into the 

older age categories, or a combination of the two. Admission 

to prison is predicated on an arrest and conviction for an 

offense, while the amount of time served is broadly governed 

by the sentence length, states’ sentencing policies (including 

enhanced sentences for repeat imprisonment, or multiple 

strikes), and type of admission (new court commitments 

typically have longer sentences than do admissions for 

violating the terms of parole). 

If older persons are arrested and convicted at a higher rate 

than younger offenders, this could explain the growth in the 

number of older prisoners through increased admissions. 

Similarly, if older offenders are sentenced to longer prison 

terms and serve a greater portion of their sentences than 

do younger offenders, the increase in the older population 

could be attributed to the aging of prisoners while they serve 

their time.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 13

Table 8

Admissions of sentenced state prisoners, by age at admission, 1993, 2003, and 2013

1993 2003 2013

Age at admission Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

Total* 493,160 100% 644,434 100% 579,773 100%

18–19 30,900 6.3 27,900 4.3 19,300 3.3

20–24 111,900 22.7 131,800 20.5 107,300 18.5

25–29 109,700 22.3 109,300 17.0 112,700 19.5

30–34 99,900 20.3 102,000 15.8 102,300 17.6

35–39 67,900 13.8 99,000 15.4 71,300 12.3

40–44 36,000 7.3 84,600 13.1 58,000 10.0

45–49 16,100 3.3 49,200 7.6 47,400 8.2

50–54 7,300 1.5 21,900 3.4 33,400 5.8

55–59 3,300 0.7 8,600 1.3 16,100 2.8

60–64 1,700 0.3 3,400 0.5 6,100 1.1

65 or older 1,300 0.3 2,100 0.3 3,500 0.6

40–54 59,400 12.1% 155,700 24.2% 138,900 23.9%

55 or older 6,300 1.3 14,100 2.2 25,700 4.4

Mean age 30.1 years 32.9 years 33.8 years

Median age 29 32 32

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year and admitted to the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. Detail may not sum to total due to rounding. 

Includes all types of prison admissions, including new court commitments, conditional release violators returned to prison, returns from appeal or bond, transfers, 

escapes, and other admissions.

*Includes prisoners age 17 or younger.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; and National Corrections Reporting Program, 1993, 2003, and 2013.

Number

0

100,000

200,000

300,000

400,000

500,000

55 or older

40–54

18–39

1993 2003 2013

Year of admission

FIGURE 12

Admissions of sentenced state prisoners, by age at 

admission, 1993, 2003, and 2013

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year and admitted to 

the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. Includes all types of prison 

admissions, including new court commitments, conditional release violators 

returned to prison, returns from appeal or bond, transfers, escapes, and other 

admissions. See Methodology.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 

2003, and 2013; and National Corrections Reporting Program, 1993, 2003, 

and 2013.

Admissions of state prisoners increased most among 

45 to 49 years old between 1993 and 2003, and among 

ages 55 or older after 2003

The number of state prison admissions increased 31% from 

1993 to 2003 and then declined 10% from 2003 to 2013. The 

growth between 1993 and 2003 was driven by admissions of 

persons ages 40 to 54 (up 162%) and those age 55 or older 

(up 124%) (figure 12). Persons age 55 or older represented 

1% of state prison admissions in 1993, 2% in 2003, and 4% 

in 2013. From 2003 to 2013, admissions declined 12% for 

those age 39 or younger and 11% for those ages 40 to 54, 

while admissions for persons age 55 or older increased. 

In 2013, 25,700 persons age 55 or older were admitted to 

prison, an increase of 82% from 2003 (14,100). The mean 

age at admission increased, from 30 years in 1993 to almost 

34 years in 2013 (table 8). The majority of the change 

occurred between 1993 and 2003.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 14

With minor exceptions, the shape of the curve denoting the 

growth rate in admissions by age group mirrors the shape of 

the curve denoting the growth rate in the sentenced prison 

population by age group (figure 13; compare to figure 3). 

A notable difference between the two curves appears at the 

right tail of the curve in the change in admissions. Among 

prisoners admitted at ages 60 to 64 and 65 or older, the 

percentage change between 2003 and 2013 was smaller than 

the change between 1993 and 2003. In the stock population, 

the percentage change between 2003 and 2013 for these 

age groups was larger than the change during the previous 

decade. For prisoners age 59 or younger, the similarity in the 

shape of the stock and admission change curves indicates 

that the growth in admissions was the major factor behind 

the change in the number of sentenced prisoners over time. 

However, for prisoners age 60 and older, an increase in 

admissions does not completely explain the increase in the 

stock population from 1993 to 2013.

Type of admission

In 2013, 70% of all admissions to state prisons of offenders 

sentenced to more than 1 year were for new convictions, 

compared to 62% in 2003 and 64% in 1993.3 This change 

reflects the increased use of parole violation admissions 

through 2000, when 57% of prison admissions were 

new court commitments. The ratio of parole violations 

to new court commitment admissions of state prisoners 

decreased after 2000. The number of persons age 55 or 

older admitted to state prisons for new convictions in 2013 

3 See Prisoners in 2012: Trends in Admissions and Releases, 1991–2012

(NCJ 243920, BJS web, November 2013) and Prisoners in 2013 (NCJ 247282, 

BJS web, September 2014).

(17,800 prisoners) was more than double the number in 2003 

(8,500). However, among persons ages 18 to 24, the number 

of new court commitments decreased by 19,700 (down 

17%) between 2003 (116,200) and 2013 (96,500), despite 

an increase in the percentage of new court commitment 

admissions for prisoners in this age group during the same 

time period (table 9). Offenders admitted on new court 

commitments tend to serve longer prison sentences than 

those who enter on parole violations, so a larger number of 

older inmates and fewer younger inmates could expect to 

spend more time behind bars in 2013 than in 2003.

Percent change

-50

0

50

100

150

200

250

2003–2013

1993–2003

65 or 

older

18–19 20–24 25–29 30–34 35–39 40–44 45–49 50–54 55–59 60–64

Age at admission

FIGURE 13

Percent change in admissions to state prisons, by age at 

admission, 1993, 2003, and 2013

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year and admitted to 

the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. Detail may not sum to total 

due to rounding. Includes all types of prison admissions, including new court 

commitments, conditional release violators returned to prison, returns from 

appeal or bond, transfers, escapes, and other admissions.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 

2003, and 2013; and National Corrections Reporting Program, 1993, 2003, 

and 2013.

Table 9

Admissions of sentenced state prisoners, by age at admission and type of admission, 1993, 2003, and 2013

Total New court commitments Other admission typesa

Age at admission 1993 2003 2013 1993 2003 2013 1993 2003 2013

Totalb 493,160 644,434 579,773 318,069 399,843 406,001 175,091 244,591 173,772

18–19 30,900 27,900 19,300 86.9% 84.4% 84.7% 13.1% 15.6% 15.3%

20–24 111,900 131,800 107,300 70.7 70.3 74.7 29.3 29.7 25.3

25–29 109,700 109,300 112,700 60.4 62.2 68.8 39.6 37.8 31.2

30–34 99,900 102,000 102,300 58.7 59.3 68.2 41.3 40.7 31.8

35–39 67,900 99,000 71,300 58.7 56.6 68.2 41.3 43.4 31.8

40–44 36,000 84,600 58,000 59.2 55.8 67.4 40.8 44.2 32.6

45–49 16,100 49,200 47,400 62.2 55.4 67.3 37.8 44.6 32.7

50–54 7,300 21,900 33,400 66.4 56.1 67.7 33.6 43.9 32.3

55–59 3,300 8,600 16,100 70.8 57.8 68.6 29.2 42.2 31.4

60–64 1,700 3,400 6,100 72.7 63.0 69.2 27.3 37.0 30.8

65 or older 1,300 2,100 3,500 79.6 65.0 72.4 20.4 35.0 27.6

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year and admitted to the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. Detail may not sum to total due to rounding. 

aIncludes all conditional release violators returned to prison, returns from appeal or bond, transfers, escapes, and other admissions.

bIncludes prisoners age 17 or younger.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; and National Corrections Reporting Program, 1993, 2003, and 2013.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 15

New court admissions made up a higher proportion of all 

admissions among persons ages 18 to 24 (74% in 1993, 

73% in 2003, and 76% in 2013) than for other age groups, 

but prisoners age 55 or older had a higher proportion of 

admissions by new court commitments than did those 

ages 25 to 54. In 1993, 73% of prisoners age 55 or older 

were admitted to state prison on new court commitments, 

compared to 60% of those ages 25 to 54. By 2013, the 

difference had narrowed, with 69% of admissions of persons 

age 55 or older and 68% of those ages 25 to 54 admitted for 

new crimes. Because sentence lengths for parole violations 

are typically shorter than those for new crimes, those 

admitted on new court commitments will generally serve 

more time in prison.

Rate of admission

As with the total prison population, if the increase in 

admissions was due solely to the aging of the U.S. resident 

population, the expected result would be no change in the 

rate of admissions by age. Except for an increase in 2003, the 

overall rate of new court commitment admissions to state 

prison was unchanged in 1993 and 2013 (166 per 100,000 

adult U.S. residents) (table 10). The only age group to 

maintain a relatively stable rate of admissions across the two 

decades was for persons ages 25 to 29 (343 per 100,000 in 

1993, 354 per 100,000 in 2003, and 356 per 100,000 in 2013).

The admission rate for new offenders ages 18 to 19 decreased 

by half between 1993 and 2013, while the rate for persons 

ages 45 to 54 more than doubled. For offenders age 55 or 

older, the admission rate was 9 per 100,000 U.S. residents of 

the same age in 1993, and 21 per 100,000 in 2013. The rate 

for new admissions among persons ages 40 to 54 increased 

from 74 per 100,000 in 1993 to 145 per 100,000 in 2013. 

These findings show that the aging of the U.S. general 

population is not the sole contributing factor to increasing 

imprisonment rates of older offenders, since the admission 

rates changed over time.

Table 10

Rate of new court commitments to state prison per 100,000 

U.S. adult residents, by age at admission, 1993, 2003, 

and 2013

Age at admission 1993 2003 2013

Total* 166 183 166

18–19 384 284 190

20–24 426 444 350

25–29 343 354 356

30–34 264 296 325

35–39 183 266 246

40–44 110 206 189

45–49 62 125 152

50–54 37 64 100

55–59 22 31 52

60–64 12 17 23

65 or older 3 4 6

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year and admitted on new 

charges to the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. Admission rates are 

calculated per 100,000 adult U.S. residents of the same age. 

*

Includes prisoners age 17 or younger. Rates are based on U.S. residents age 18 

or older.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 

2003, and 2013; National Corrections Reporting Program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; 

and U.S. Census Bureau, National monthly postcensal resident estimates, 1990–

2000 (1993), National intercensal estimates, 2000–2010 (2003), and Postcensal 

population estimate, 2013.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 16

Admitting offense

In 1993, 41% of persons age 55 or older were admitted 

to state prisons on sentences of more than 1 year for 

new violent offenses. This age category had the highest 

percentage of admissions for murder, nonnegligent 

manslaughter, and sexual assault in 1993 (table 11). 

(See appendix table 11 for the full age distribution.) Violent 

offenders accounted for 29% of persons ages 18 to 29 who 

were newly admitted in 1993, 26% of those ages 40 to 54, 

and 23% of those ages 30 to 39. By 2013, the percentage of 

prisoners age 55 or older admitted for new violent offenses 

had decreased to 30%, but only persons ages 18 to 29 were 

admitted for violent crimes at a higher rate (33% of all 

offenses in this age category). Despite the decline, the greater 

number of total sentenced admissions for persons age 55 

or older in 2013 (17,800) resulted in 3,500 more new court 

commitments for violent offenses than in 1993. Of these 

additional admissions, new court commitments for rape or 

sexual assault accounted for 34% of new prisoners (1,200). 

The number of admissions for simple or aggravated assault 

increased by 1,300 between 1993 and 2013 for newly 

sentenced offenders age 55 or older, accounting for 37% of 

the total increase in the number of violent admissions.

In 2013, 22% of all new admissions of persons age 55 or 

older were for property offenses (up from 16% in 1993), 

and admissions for new public order offenses for persons 

in this age group grew from 17% in 1993 to 24% in 2013. 

Despite a 3% decrease in the proportion of offenders age 55 

or older admitted for drug offenses between 2003 and 2013, 

the number of admissions for new drug crimes in this age 

group increased by 1,700 in 2013 because of growth in all 

admissions. All other age groups experienced decreases in 

both the number and percentage of persons admitted for 

drug offenses between 2003 and 2013. These findings suggest 

that a greater number of older offenders were admitted 

to serve a range of sentence lengths, including the longer 

sentences typically associated with violent crimes, as well as 

potentially shorter sentences for drug and property crimes.

Table 11

New court commitment admissions to state prisons, by age at admission and most serious offense, 1993, 2003, 2013

18–29 30–39 40–54 55 or older

Most serious offense 1993 2003 2013 1993 2003 2013 1993 2003 2013 1993 2003 2013

Total 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

Violent offenses 29.0% 27.2% 33.0% 22.9% 21.3% 24.7% 25.9% 20.3% 24.2% 41.5% 33.3% 30.5%

Murdera 3.1 2.3 2.6 1.8 1.5 1.8 2.8 1.5 1.7 4.8 3.6 2.8

Manslaughter 1.2 0.7 0.7 1.0 0.6 0.6 1.5 0.6 0.6 2.7 1.1 0.9

Rape/sexual assault 4.0 4.5 4.4 6.3 5.4 4.7 10.0 6.1 6.2 24.4 18.3 12.8

Robbery 11.4 9.2 11.3 6.3 4.4 4.8 3.7 3.3 3.7 1.4 1.8 2.6

Assault 7.9 8.5 11.2 6.2 7.5 10.1 6.5 7.1 9.7 6.8 6.7 9.1

Other violent 1.5 2.1 2.7 1.4 2.0 2.7 1.4 1.8 2.3 1.4 1.8 2.2

Property offenses 31.5% 28.5% 31.7% 30.7% 27.9% 27.6% 26.2% 25.9% 28.6% 16.3% 16.8% 22.0%

Burglary 14.0 11.8 16.9 11.3 8.3 10.0 7.5 7.4 9.2 2.8 3.0 6.2

Larceny 7.2 5.6 6.1 9.4 7.7 7.7 9.6 8.4 9.7 6.5 6.7 9.0

Motor vehicle theft 2.8 3.1 1.3 1.6 2.2 1.3 1.1 1.4 1.1 0.5 0.7 0.4

Fraud 3.4 4.2 3.0 4.9 6.5 4.7 5.1 5.9 4.9 4.1 4.8 3.7

Other property 4.1 3.8 4.3 3.4 3.2 4.0 2.9 2.7 3.6 2.6 1.7 2.7

Drug offensesb 28.6% 29.6% 20.3% 31.4% 31.3% 28.6% 29.8% 31.6% 24.9% 20.8% 24.9% 21.6%

Public order offensesc 8.0% 10.5% 13.6% 11.8% 15.3% 17.6% 14.4% 17.7% 21.1% 17.4% 20.9% 24.3%

Other/unspecified offensesd 1.1% 0.9% 1.0% 1.1% 0.7% 0.9% 1.2% 0.7% 0.8% 1.0% 0.7% 0.8%

Total new court commitment 

admissions 172,200 184,100 174,200 98,500 116,500 118,300 36,200 86,700 93,700 4,600 8,500 17,800

Note: Based on sentenced prisoners admitted on new court commitments to the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. Detail may not sum to total due to rounding.

aIncludes nonnegligent manslaughter.

bIncludes possession, trafficking, and other drug offenses.

cIncludes weapons offenses; driving under the influence; court offenses; commercialized vice, morals, and decency offenses; liquor law violations; and other public order 

offenses.

dIncludes juvenile offenses and other unspecified offense categories.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; and National Corrections Reporting Program, 1993, 2003, and 2013.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 17

Arrests of persons age 55 or older have increased over time

There were almost 2 million fewer arrests in the United 

States in 2012 (the most recent year for which national arrest 

estimates by age are available) than in 1993 (down 1,851,900 

or 13%), with all of the decrease attributed to fewer arrests 

for persons age 39 or younger (table 12). Over the same 

period, arrests of persons ages 40 to 54 increased 44% (up 

739,000) and arrests of persons age 55 or older increased 77% 

(up 260,800). 

As with prison admissions, growth in arrests between 1993 

and 2003 was greater for persons ages 40 to 54 (up 47%) 

than for those age 55 or older (up 9%). Between 2003 and 

2012, however, arrests of persons ages 40 to 54 decreased 

2% compared to those age 55 or older (up 63%).

The total number of arrests for violent offenses declined 

11% (down 214,100) between 1993 and 2012. Over the 

same period, arrests of persons ages 40 to 54 increased 58% 

(131,200) and arrests of persons age 55 or older increased 

88% (40,500) for violent crimes. The number of arrests of 

persons age 55 or older for drug offenses increased 375%, 

from 9,600 in 1993 to 45,600 in 2012, compared to a 26% 

increase for persons ages 18 to 39 (from 892,100 in 1993 to 

1,120,200 in 2013).

Table 12

Arrests, by age at arrest and most serious offense, 1993, 2003, and 2012

Violent offenses

Age at arrest Totala All violent offensesb Murderc Rape or sexual assaultd Robbery

Aggravated 

assault Property offensese Drug offenses

Totalf

1993 14,050,400 2,003,100 23,400 142,500 173,600 518,700 3,095,900 1,126,300

2003 13,646,600 1,935,300 13,200 117,900 107,600 449,900 2,433,100 1,678,200

2012g 12,198,500 1,789,000 11,100 86,500 103,700 388,400 2,208,900 1,552,400

18–39

1993 9,625,200 1,383,100 16,900 88,100 116,100 363,200 1,848,900 892,100

2003 8,616,700 1,179,900 9,900 65,800 71,200 287,700 1,429,900 1,184,800

2012g 7,872,600 1,098,000 8,300 45,000 70,200 249,100 1,380,400 1,120,200

40–54

1993 1,666,000 227,000 2,100 21,200 7,700 62,500 276,000 111,900

2003 2,452,000 350,300 1,700 22,700 10,400 87,500 353,500 273,500

2012g 2,405,000 358,200 1,500 18,800 10,600 82,000 372,000 246,700

55 or older

1993 340,100 45,800 600 7,300 600 13,200 56,800 9,600

2003 369,100 54,700 400 6,900 700 13,700 47,800 22,300

2012g 600,900 86,300 500 7,600 1,400 20,900 81,700 45,600

Note: Based on national estimates of arrests reported to the FBI. Detail may not sum to total due to offenses excluded from this table, missing data, and rounding. 

See Methodology.

aIncludes arrests for public order and other offenses not shown in this table. 

bIncludes murder, nonnegligent manslaughter, aggravated and other assaults, rape, and sex offenses other than commercialized vice and prostitution.

cIncludes nonnegligent manslaughter.

dIncludes forcible rape and other sex offenses, excluding prostitution and commercialized vice. Includes incest, indecent exposure, and statutory rape as well as 

offenses against chastity, common decency, and morals. 

eIncludes burglary, larceny, motor vehicle theft, arson, forgery and counterfeiting, fraud, embezzlement, stolen property, and vandalism.

f

Includes arrests of persons age 17 or younger.

gNational-level estimates of arrests by age group have not yet been published for 2013. Arrest data from 2012 were used instead.

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, Arrest data analysis tool using FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) program, 1993, 2003, and 2012.

Continued on next page
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 18

As a rate per 100,000 U.S. residents of the same age, persons 

age 55 or older had lower rates of arrest than younger 

offenders across all offense categories from 1993 to 2012 

(table 13). However, the 2012 rate for overall arrests in this 

age group (705 per 100,000 U.S. residents age 55 or older) 

increased from 1993 (630 per 100,000) and 2003 (572 per 

100,000). The rate of arrest of persons age 55 or older for 

violent offenses increased 19% between 2003 and 2012, 

compared to a 2% increase for persons ages 40 to 54 and 

a 12% decrease for persons ages 18 to 39. Arrest rates of 

persons age 55 or older for drug offenses increased 54% 

between 2003 and 2012, compared to a decrease of 10% for 

persons age 54 or younger.

Arrests of persons age 55 or older have increased over time (continued)

Table 13

Arrest rates per 100,000 U.S. residents, by age at arrest and most serious offense, 1993, 2003, and 2013

Violent offenses

Age at arrest Totala All violent offensesb Murderc Rape or sexual assaultd Robbery

Aggravated 

assault

Property 

offensese Drug offenses

Totalf

1993 7,331 1,045 12 74 91 584 1,615 588

2003 6,248 886 6 54 49 206 1,114 768

2013g 4,997 733 5 35 42 159 905 636

18–39

1993 10,830 1,556 19 99 131 409 2,080 1,004

2003 9,597 1,314 11 73 79 320 1,593 1,320

2013g 8,331 1,162 9 48 74 264 1,461 1,185

40–54

1993 3,415 465 4 43 16 128 566 229

2003 3,828 547 3 35 16 137 552 427

2013g 3,736 556 2 29 16 127 578 383

55 or older

1993 630 85 1 14 1 24 105 18

2003 572 85 1 11 1 21 74 35

2013g 705 101 1 9 2 25 96 53

Note: Based on arrests per 100,000 U.S. adult residents of the same age.

aIncludes arrests for public order and other offenses not shown in this table. 

bIncludes murder, nonnegligent manslaughter, aggravated and other assaults, rape, and sex offenses other than commercialized vice and prostitution.

cIncludes nonnegligent manslaughter.

dIncludes forcible rape and other sex offenses, excluding prostitution and commercialized vice. Includes incest, indecent exposure, and statutory rape as well as 

offenses against chastity, common decency, and morals. 

eIncludes burglary, larceny, motor vehicle theft, arson, forgery and counterfeiting, fraud, embezzlement, stolen property, and vandalism.

f

Includes arrests of persons age 17 or younger.

gNational-level estimates of arrests by age group have not yet been published for 2013. Arrest data from 2012 were used instead.

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, Arrest data analysis tool using FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) program, 1993, 2003, and 2012; and U.S. Census Bureau, 

National monthly postcensal resident estimates, 1990–2000 (1993), National intercensal estimates, 2000–2010 (2003), and Postcensal population estimate, 2013.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 19

Likelihood of admission to prison after an arrest

Changes in the offense-specific ratio of new court 

commitments to arrests over time indicate a change in the 

severity of the justice system response to particular crimes. 

For arrestees of all ages, the ratio of new court commitments 

to arrests increased steadily from 1993 to 2013, especially for 

violent crimes (table 14). The number of admissions 

to state prison on new commitments can increase for a 

variety of reasons, including increased rates of crime or 

more successful offender apprehension, trial, or conviction. 

Total arrests fell 3% between 1993 and 2003, while the 

number of new court commitment admissions for all 

offenses to state prison increased 26%, from 318,100 in 1993 

to 399,800 in 2003. Between 2003 and 2013, the increase in 

new court commitment admissions was modest (up 2%), but 

the number of arrests continued to decline across all offense 

categories (down 11%). This suggests that the increase in 

new admissions can be attributed to an increase in the 

successful prosecution of persons identified and arrested by 

law enforcement.

Table 14

Rate of new court commitments to state prison per 1,000 arrests, by age at admission and offense, 1993, 2003, and 2013

Violent offenses

Age at arrest or admission

All violent 

offensesa,b Murderc,d Rape or sexual assaulte Robbery

Aggravated 

assaultf Property offensesg

Drug 

offenses

18–39

1993 49 449 154 240 51 48 93

2003 56 646 229 334 71 61 79

2013h 64 848 308 387 91 67 64

40–54

1993 36 480 175 178 34 35 98

2003 41 826 238 278 54 65 103

2013h 49 1,058 319 340 78 75 98

55 or older

1993 38 365 158 108 23 14 102

2003 46 764 228 230 34 30 96

2013h 54 1,070 310 354 60 50 88

Note: Rates based on sentenced prisoners admitted on new court commitments to the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. Admission rates are calculated per 

1,000 arrestees of the same age and offense type. Detail may not sum to total due to excluded offenses, missing data, and rounding. Includes prisoners age 14 or older 

and age 100 or younger at admission. See Methodology.

aUCR data do not include arrests for negligent manslaughter. For this analysis, negligent manslaughter was removed from the new court commitment prison admission 

data.

bIncludes murder, nonnegligent manslaughter, aggravated and other assaults, rape, and sex offenses other than commercialized vice and prostitution.

cIncludes nonnegligent manslaughter.

dThe number of prison admissions may exceed the number of arrests made for murder and nonnegligent manslaughter in a given year due to the time involved in the 

prosecution of these offenders. 

eIncludes forcible rape and other sex offenses, excluding prostitution and commercialized vice. Includes incest and statutory rape. Arrests but not prison admissions 

include indecent exposure, offenses against chastity, common decency, and morals. These are considered public order offenses in the prison admission data.

f

Includes aggravated assault only.

gIncludes burglary, larceny, motor vehicle theft, arson, forgery and counterfeiting, fraud, embezzlement, stolen property, and vandalism.

hNational-level estimates of arrests by age group have not yet been published for 2013. Arrest data from 2012 were used instead.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; National Corrections Reporting Program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; and 

Arrest data analysis tool using FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) program, 1993, 2003, and 2012.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 20

Overall, the likelihood of being admitted to prison after 

an arrest increased for all age groups between 1993 and 

2013. The rate of admission after an arrest for murder or 

nonnegligent manslaughter increased from 449 per 1,000 

arrests of persons ages 18 to 39 in 1993 to 848 per 1,000 

in 2013 (figures 14a, 14b, and 14c). During this period, 

arrests of persons ages 18 to 39 for murder declined 51% 

while new court commitment admissions decreased 7%. 

In comparison, the rate of admission after an arrest for 

convicted murderers increased from 480 per 1,000 arrests 

of persons ages 40 to 54 in 1993 to 1,058 per 1,000 in 2013. 

New court commitments for this age group increased 60% 

despite a 29% decline in the number of arrests. 

For newly admitted state prisoners age 55 or older convicted 

of murder, the rate of admission after an arrest increased by 

more than 700 per 1,000 between 1993 and 2013, despite a 

17% decrease in the number of arrests. The number of new 

court commitment admissions for murder or nonnegligent 

manslaughter among persons age 55 or older increased 

135%, from more than 200 in 1993 to more than 500 in 

2013. The only major offense category for which persons age 

55 or older who were admitted to state prison on new court 

commitments in 2013 had higher admission rates after an 

arrest than did younger persons was murder or nonnegligent 

manslaughter. It also represented the only offense for which 

there were fewer arrests in 2013 than in 1993 for persons age 

55 or older.

The rate of new court commitment admissions to state 

prison after an arrest for robbery increased from 108 per 

1,000 arrests of persons age 55 or older in 1993 to 354 

per 1,000 in 2013. Arrests for robbery in this age group 

increased 133% over the same period, and admissions 

increased 400%. In comparison, the number of arrests 

for robbery fell 40% for persons ages 18 to 39, and new 

court commitment admissions decreased 2%. The rate of 

admission after an arrest for persons ages 18 to 39 who were 

convicted of robbery increased from 240 per 1,000 arrests 

in 1993 to 387 per 1,000 in 2013, a smaller change over time 

than for other age groups.

Note: Based on sentenced state prisoners admitted on new court commitments. 

Admission rates are calculated per 1,000 arrestees of the same age and offense 

type. National-level estimates of arrests by age group have not yet been 

published for 2013. Arrest data from 2012 were used instead. UCR data do not 

include arrests for negligent manslaughter or simple assault. For this analysis, 

negligent manslaughter and simple assault were removed from the new court 

commitment prison admission data. 

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 

2003, and 2013; National Corrections Reporting Program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; 

and Arrest data analysis tool using FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) program, 

1993, 2003, and 2012.

Year of admission

0

200

400

600

800

1,000

1,200

Drug oenses

Aggravated assault

Robbery

Rape or sexual assault

Murder

1993 2003 2013

Admission rate per 1,000 arrests

FIGURE 14a

New court commitment rates for state prisoners ages 18 to 

39 per 1,000 arrests, by offense, 1993, 2003, and 2013

Year of admission

0

200

400

600

800

1,000

1,200

Drug oenses

Aggravated assault

Robbery

Rape or sexual assault

Murder

1993 2003 2013

Admission rate per 1,000 arrests

FIGURE 14b

New court commitment rates for state prisoners ages 40 to 

54 per 1,000 arrests, by offense, 1993, 2003, and 2013

FIGURE 14c

New court commitment rates for state prisoners age 55 or 

older per 1,000 arrests, by offense, 1993, 2003, and 2013

Year of admission

0

200

400

600

800

1,000

1,200

Drug oenses

Aggravated assault

Robbery

Rape or sexual assault

Murder

1993 2003 2013

Admission rate per 1,000 arrests
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 21

Unlike other offenses, there was parity in the rate of 

admission given arrest for rape or sexual assault across ages 

over time. In 2013, the rate of admission to prison after an 

arrest for sexual assault for new offenders age 55 or older 

(310 per 1,000) was equal to the rate for persons ages 18 to 

39 (308 per 1,000) and less than the rate for persons ages 40 

to 54 (319 per 1,000). The number of arrests for sex offenses 

decreased 49% for persons ages 18 to 39 between 1993 and 

2013, compared to a decrease of 11% for persons ages 40 to 

54 and an increase of 4% for those age 55 or older. New state 

prison admissions for sex offenses among persons age 55 or 

older increased 106% from 1993 to 2013, almost twice the 

percentage change as for persons ages 40 to 54 (62%) and far 

more than the 3% increase for persons ages 18 to 39.

Inmates age 55 or older admitted to state prison were 

sentenced to—and were expected to serve—more time on 

average than younger inmates 

Sentence length

The prison population can grow because inmates are serving 

longer sentences. The length of imprisonment depends on 

the sentence imposed by state courts, state statutes guiding 

how much of the sentence must be served, and the offender’s 

behavior while in prison. Sentence length depends on the 

seriousness of the current offense and the offender’s past 

criminal history. The NCRP captures the maximum sentence 

length of the most serious offense and the total sentence 

imposed for all offenses. However, some states only have 

the ability to report one of these sentences. Sentence length 

reported here represents the total sentence for all offenses 

except for those states that can only report the maximum 

sentence for the most serious offense. In states with 

indeterminate sentencing, the total or most serious offense 

sentences represent the upper end of the possible penalty 

since most prisoners will be paroled prior to serving the 

maximum sentence.

Prisoners age 55 or older had consistently higher mean 

sentence lengths when all offenses are considered, increasing 

from 76 months in 1993 to 82 months in 2003 and 2013 

(table 15). In contrast, prisoners ages 18 to 39 were 

sentenced to a mean of 64 months in 1993 and 2003 and 69 

months in 2013, and mean sentence length for new inmates 

ages 40 to 54 increased from 65 months in 1993 and 2003 to 

71 months in 2013.

TABLE 15

Distributions of sentence length for new court commitments to state prison, by age at admission and most serious offense, 

1993, 2003, and 2013

Age at admission

18–39 40–54 55 or older

Most serious offense 1993 2003 2013 1993 2003 2013 1993 2003 2013

All offenses

10th percentilea 16 mos. 16 mos. 16 mos. 16 mos. 14 mos. 15 mos. 16 mos. 16mos. 16 mos.

25th percentilea 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24

Median (50th percentile)a 48 43 48 48 36 47 60 48 48

75th percentilea 84 72 82 84 72 84 120 97 96

90th percentilea 180 144 144 180 144 167 240 240 204

Meanb 64 64 69 65 65 71 76 82 82

Percent of admitted prisoners with 

sentences of life or deatha 1.5% 0.9% 1.0% 2.1% 1.0% 1.4% 3.2% 2.4% 3.4%

Number of new court commitments 270,700 300,600 292,500 36,200 86,700 93,700 4,600 8,500 17,800

Violent offenses

10th percentilea 24 mos. 24 mos. 24 mos. 24 mos. 24 mos. 23mos. 24 mos. 24 mos. 24 mos.

25th percentilea 36 36 36 42 36 36 48 43 36

Median (50th percentile)a 72 60 60 84 65 60 85 84 84

75th percentilea 168 120 120 180 156 154 180 180 192

90th percentilea 324 252 264 382 336 360 360 480 504

Meanb 100 97 100 107 112 111 111 129 128

Percent of admitted prisoners with 

sentences of life or deatha 4.6% 2.9% 3.0% 6.3% 4.0% 4.8% 6.8% 7.1% 9.5%

Number of new court commitments 72,600 75,000 86,600 9,400 17,600 22,600 1,900 2,800 5,400

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year and admitted to the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities on new court commitments. Total maximum 

sentence length for all offenses is used unless state could only report the maximum sentence for the most serious offense. 

aIncludes persons sentenced to life, life without parole, life plus additional years, or death.

bExcludes persons sentenced to life, life without parole, life plus additional years, or death.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; and National Corrections Reporting Program, 1993, 2003, and 2013.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 22

Longer sentences were also imposed on older offenders 

convicted for violent crimes compared to younger inmates, 

and the mean sentence length increased over time for 

prisoners age 55 or older. Persons age 55 or older admitted 

on new violent offenses in 2003 and 2013 were sentenced to 

a mean of 128 months, up from 111 months in 1993. Among 

new violent offenders ages 18 to 39 admitted to prison, the 

average sentence length was about 100 months across the 

two decades, while those ages 40 to 54 had mean imposed 

sentences of about 111 months. 

The percentage of new admissions with sentences of life, 

life without parole, life plus additional years, or death was 

greater at all three time points for offenders age 55 or older 

than for new prisoners age 54 or younger. During 2013, 

9% of all new admissions for violent offenses had sentences 

of life or death imposed on prisoners age 55 or older, 

compared to 5% of new violent offenders ages 40 to 54 and 

3% of those ages 18 to 39.

Time served in prison

Across all ages, the mean time expected to be served on a 

new court commitment upon entry to state prison increased 

from 29 months in 1993 to 37 months in 2003 regardless 

of offense type, when adjusted for the growth in the overall 

state prison population (table 16). A much smaller increase 

was observed between 2003 and 2013 (39 months). By 2003, 

new violent offenders of all ages could anticipate an average 

prison stay of 72 months, up from 50 months in 1993. The 

mean time expected to be served reported includes the time 

served in prison on a new crime until first release, and also 

encompasses estimates for subsequent time to be served 

for violations to parole following the first release. While 

standard calculations of mean time expected to be served 

assume a stable prison population, the estimates in table 16 

are adjusted to account for known change in each age group 

over time (see Methodology for further details on adjusting 

the mean time expected to be served calculations).

TABLE 16 

Mean time expected to be served at time of new court 

commitment to state prison for persons admitted in 1993, 

2003, and 2013, by age at admission and most serious 

offense

Age and year 

at admission All Violent Property Drug

Total

1993 29.3 mos. 49.8 mos. 22.1 mos. 21.3 mos.

2003 37.1 72.2 27.1 24.6

2013 38.9 72.6 25.5 25.7

18–39

1993 27.4 mos. 42.9 mos. 23.5 mos. 20.8 mos.

2003 33.1 60.2 24.7 22.9

2013 32.2 54.9 22.0 23.3

40–54

1993 38.1 mos. 77.4 mos. 23.4 mos. 25.9 mos.

2003 47.5 112.0 35.6 29.2

2013 51.6 115.9 33.5 30.8

55 or older

1993 62.5 mos. 94.7 mos. 41.7 mos. 44.8 mos.

2003 77.1 154.2 44.9 37.6

2013 81.6 182.3 43.2 37.2

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year and admitted to the 

jurisdiction of state correctional authorities on new court commitments. See 

Methodology for calculation of mean time expected to be served.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Corrections Reporting Program, 

1993, 2003, and 2013.

On average, older offenders could expect to serve more time 

than their younger counterparts between 1993 and 2013 

across all offense categories. In 1993, new offenders age 55 

or older had an estimated average expected time to be served 

of 62 months when all offenses were combined, compared to 

38 months for those ages 40 to 54 and 27 months for inmates 

ages 18 to 39. By 2013, this had increased to 82 months for 

those age 55 or older, 52 months for 40 to 54 year olds, and 

32 months for 18 to 39 year olds. 

This pattern was the same when crime type was 

disaggregated. New violent offenders age 55 or older could 

anticipate serving a mean time of 95 months in 1993, about 

twice as long as inmates admitted between the ages of 18 

to 39 (43 months). By 2013, this disparity had widened 

so that, on average, new violent offenders age 55 or older 

were expected to serve more than three times longer 

(182 months) than those ages 18 to 39 (55 months). On 

average, new violent offenders ages 40 to 54 could expect to 

serve more than twice the younger offenders (116 months 

in 2013). As previously shown, a larger percentage of state 

prisoners age 55 or older were sentenced for the serious 

violent offenses of murder and rape or sexual assault than 

those age 54 or younger. The relative severity of the violent 

offenses contributed to the longer time served by those age 

55 or older.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 23

The percentage of older prisoners released after serving at 

least 10 years more than doubled between 1993 and 2013

Prisoners serving long terms have a greater opportunity to 

age into higher age cohorts. Using 10 years as a measure 

of a long time spent in prison, the number of persons who 

have aged into higher age cohorts during the two decades 

considered in this report can be tracked. As expected, 

the oldest age categories have the highest percentages 

of persons who served 10 years or more on new court 

commitments before release. In 1993, no more than 8% of 

offenders of any age who were admitted to prison on a new 

court commitment served 10 years or more before release 

(figure 15). By 2003, this increased to 17% for prisoners age 

65 or older. In 2013, 12% of prisoners who were released 

when they were ages 55 to 59, 16% of those ages 60 to 64, 

and 28% of those age 65 or older had served at least 10 years 

on a new court commitment.

The number of prisoners of all ages released after serving 

10 years or longer on new court commitments increased 

between 1993 and 2003, from 1% of all releases (4,100) from 

new commitments in 1993 to 3% in 2003 (10,400). Between 

2003 and 2013, these released prisoners grew to 4% of all 

releases from new commitments in 2013 (14,900) (table 17).

FIGURE 15

Percent of released sentenced state prisoners who 

served 10 years or more since admission on a new court 

commitment in 1993, 2003, and 2013, by age of release

Percent

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

2013

2003

1993

65 or 

older

30–34 35–39 40–44 45–49 50–54 55–59 60–64 

Age at release

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year, admitted to the 

jurisdiction of state correctional authorities on a new court commitment, and 

released after serving 10 years or more. Includes all types of prison releases, 

including conditional, unconditional, releases to appeal or bond, transfers, 

escapes, deaths, and other releases. Younger age groups have been excluded 

because very few inmates age 29 or younger have served 10 years in state 

prison.

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Corrections Reporting Program, 

1993, 2003, and 2013.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 24

TABLE 17

Time served by released state prisoners, by age and type of admission, 1993, 2003, and 2013

Age at release and time served

All releases First releases

1993 2003 2013 1993 2003 2013

Total 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

Less than 6 months 32.5 30.6 29.4 28.6% 21.8 25.0

6 mos–less than 1 year 24.0 24.6 20.1 24.1 25.4 20.7

1–1.9 21.2 20.4 21.9 22.6 23.5 23.3

2–2.9 9.5 9.0 10.2 10.6 10.5 11.0

3–4.9 7.4 7.8 9.1 8.2 9.5 9.9

5–9.9 4.2 5.5 5.9 4.5 6.8 6.5

10 or more 1.3 2.0 3.4 1.4 2.5 3.5

18–24 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

Less than 6 months 37.0 32.1 53.1 35.1 27.3 47.6

6 mos–less than 1 year 26.4 29.8 17.8 26.6 30.5 19.1

1–1.9 22.2 22.3 16.3 23.0 24.2 18.3

2–2.9 8.9 8.7 7.0 9.4 9.7 8.1

3–4.9 4.9 5.9 4.9 5.1 6.8 6.0

5–9.9 0.7 1.3 0.8 0.7 1.5 0.9

10 or more 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

25–34 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

Less than 6 months 31.4 29.1 24.6 27.0 20.4 19.9

6 mos–less than 1 year 24.1 24.8 22.3 23.9 24.8 22.7

1–1.9 21.5 20.8 24.1 22.9 23.6 25.2

2–2.9 9.7 9.3 11.2 11.1 10.9 12.1

3–4.9 8.0 8.4 10.1 9.1 10.4 11.2

5–9.9 4.6 6.5 6.5 5.1 8.4 7.5

10 or more 0.8 1.1 1.2 0.9 1.5 1.5

35–44 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

Less than 6 months 31.6 31.7 22.4 25.8 20.7 17.9

6 mos–less than 1 year 22.6 23.2 20.6 22.7 24.1 20.9

1–1.9 19.9 19.7 23.7 21.8 23.6 25.2

2–2.9 9.3 8.9 11.3 10.8 10.6 12.0

3–4.9 8.2 8.0 10.2 9.5 9.9 11.0

5–9.9 5.8 5.9 7.4 6.4 7.5 8.1

10 or more 2.6 2.6 4.4 3.0 3.6 4.9

45–54 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

Less than 6 months 28.4 31.1 20.4 22.9 19.5 16.3

6 mos–less than 1 year 20.4 21.6 19.4 20.3 22.7 20.2

1–1.9 19.8 18.9 23.3 21.4 22.7 25.1

2–2.9 9.8 9.0 11.0 11.3 10.7 11.6

3–4.9 9.7 8.5 10.5 11.1 10.4 11.2

5–9.9 7.8 6.9 8.3 8.8 8.7 8.8

10 or more 4.1 4.1 7.1 4.3 5.4 7.0

55 or older 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

Less than 6 months 21.7 23.9 15.8 17.6 14.4 12.8

6 mos–less than 1 year 19.2 17.3 15.5 19.1 16.4 15.7

1–1.9 19.5 17.6 20.5 20.3 20.0 21.5

2–2.9 11.5 10.0 10.8 12.7 11.5 11.5

3–4.9 11.9 10.6 11.1 13.1 12.6 11.6

5–9.9 10.4 11.3 10.9 11.3 13.6 11.5

10 or more 5.9 9.2 15.4 6.0 11.5 15.5

Note: Based on sentenced prisoners released from the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. Detail may not sum to total due to rounding. Includes all types of 

prison releases, including conditional, unconditional, releases to appeal or bond, transfers, escapes, deaths, and other releases. 

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Corrections Reporting Program, 1993, 2003, and 2013.

While the percentage of state prisoners released after serving 

10 or more years on a new court commitment increased 

between 1993 and 2013, the percentage of those serving 

less than a year, and, in particular, those serving less than 

6 months decreased for all age groups except those ages 

18 to 24. When limited to prisoners releases for the first time 

after being admitted on new court commitments, 35% of 

prisoners ages 18 to 24 at release in 1993 had served less 

than 6 months, compared to 48% in 2013. Two-thirds of 

all state prisoners released in 2013 between the ages of 18 

and 24 served less than a year after being sentenced for a 

new crime.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 25

In contrast, only 43% of prisoners released in 2013 when 

they were 25 to 34 years of age, 39% of those ages 35 to 

44, 36% of those ages 45 to 54, and 28% of those age 55 or 

older at time of release served for less than a year after being 

admitted on a new court commitment. These percentages 

were between 7% and 10% lower than in 1993. While each 

of these age groups observed an increase over the 20 years in 

the percentage of prisoners released after serving 10 or more 

years, the percentage of persons between the ages of 25 and 

44 released in 2013 after staying 2 to 9.9 years on a new court 

commitment also grew. The percentage of persons spending 

between 2 and 9.9 years before release at ages 45 to 54 was 

largely unchanged between 1993 and 2013, and decreased 

for persons released age 55 or older. 

Across all admission types, 37% of prisoners ages 18 to 24 

released in 1993 had spent fewer than 6 months in state 

prison after admission, and a total of 63% were imprisoned 

for less than a year. These percentages decreased for released 

inmates from this age group in 2003, but increased so that 

by 2013, 53% of persons released between the ages of 18 and 

24 years had served less than 6 months, and 71% served less 

than one year.

Over time, a larger percentage of offenders age 25 or older 

spent one year or more in state prison on all types of 

admissions, while the majority of the youngest prisoners 

were released before serving a full year. These longer stays 

contributed to the increase of offenders in all age groups 

beyond the 18 to 24 year olds in the state prison population 

between 1993 and 2013.

By 2013, 40% of persons age 55 or older in prison at 

yearend had served 10 years or more, compared to 9% 

in 1993

On December 31, 2013, a higher percentage of state 

prisoners imprisoned on new court commitments had 

served for at least 10 years than in previous years (figure 16). 

This held true across all age groups. In 1993, 9% of offenders 

age 55 or older who entered state prison on a new court 

commitment had served 10 years or more (26,300 inmates). 

By 2013, this had increased to 40% of offenders age 55 or 

older (131,700). Almost half (48%) of those age 65 or older 

in 2013 had served for 10 years or more (13,900 inmates), 

compared to 38% in 2003 (4,500) and 11% in 1993 (700).

As with persons released after having served 10 or more 

years on a new court commitment, growth of prisoners 

in the yearend stock population serving 10 or more years 

slowed between 2003 and 2013. Despite this slowdown, 

almost 29% of prisoners age 40 or older who were serving 

prison terms for new court commitments on December 31, 

2013, (about 152,700 prisoners) had spent at least 10 years 

in state prison, compared to 10% (about 15,200) in 1993 and 

23% (about 94,700) in 2003. 

Over time, admissions contributed a smaller proportion of 

state prison inmates age 55 or older relative to prisoners 

who turned 55 while in prison

The prison population of any particular age group on 

December 31 is composed of—

 prisoners who were admitted into that age group during 

the current calendar year

 prisoners who were admitted to the age group during 

previous years and who, on December 31 of the current 

year, are still in that same age group

 prisoners (regardless of the amount of time served) who 

have spent enough time in prison to age into the next 

group by December 31 of the current year, after being 

admitted in a lower age category.

FIGURE 16

Percent of state prisoners who served 10 years or more 

since admission on a new court commitment, by age, 

December 31, 1993, 2003, and 2013

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year, admitted to the 

jurisdiction of state correctional authorities on a new court commitment, and 

in state prison at yearend after serving 10 years or more. Time served calculated 

using December 31 of 1993, 2003, or 2013 minus the date of prison admission. 

See Methodology. See table 20 for standard errors of the 1993 estimates. Younger 

age groups have been excluded because very few inmates age 29 or younger 

have served 10 years in state prison.

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Corrections Reporting Program, 

1993, 2003, and 2013.

Percent

0

10

20

30

40

50 2013

2003

1993

65 or 

older

30–34 35–39 40–44 45–49 50–54 55–59 60–64 

Age at yearend
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 26

TABLE 18 

Percent contribution of admissions and sentenced state prisoners aging into the prison population, by age at yearend, 

December 31, 1993, 2003, and 2013

Admitted ina— Aged into groupb—

Age at yearend

Total number of 

prisoners on 

December 31a Total

Current year to 

this age group

Previous years to this 

age group, still in same 

age group

Who have served 

9 years or lessc Who have served 10 years or morec

18–24

1993 192,200 100% 37.5% 62.4% 0.0% 0.0%

2003 220,000 100% 49.8 50.2 0.0 0.0

2013 177,300 100% 47.4 52.6 0.0 0.0

25–34

1993 388,800 100% 23.6% 51.2% 22.6% 2.5%

2003 420,000 100% 33.2 33.0 28.2 5.5

2013 431,300 100% 32.9 36.1 25.5 5.4

35–44

1993 190,800 100% 21.5% 43.5% 25.8% 9.2%

2003 375,300 100% 31.2 31.1 22.9 14.8

2013 335,100 100% 25.6 29.6 24.3 20.5

45–54

1993 53,400 100% 17.2% 41.7% 30.8% 10.3%

2003 180,400 100% 25.1 23.8 28.3 22.8

2013 248,900 100% 21.9 26.8 23.4 27.9

55 or older

1993 26,300 100% 13.2% 56.4% 21.6% 8.9%

2003 58,300 100% 16.9 29.1 23.8 30.2

2013 131,500 100% 14.0 26.4 20.4 39.2

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year under the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. Persons in a different age category at date of admission 

than at yearend were classified as having aged into the next age group. See Methodology. See appendix table 5 for standard errors of the 1993 estimates.

aIncludes prisoners of all admission types.

bPersons who were admitted by any means in an age group younger than the one they belonged to at yearend.

cTime served refers to current prison commitment.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991; and National 

Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013.

In all three years considered, at least 25% of the yearend 

prison populations for those age 25 or older was due to the 

movement of prisoners who had been admitted into an age 

group younger than the one they were currently a member 

of, and had spent enough time in state prison to age into a 

higher group (table 18). At the same time, new admissions 

during 1993, 2003, and 2013 did not contribute more than 

a third of the persons age 25 or older. In 2003 and 2013, 

those who aged into the 45 to 54 and 55 or older groups 

represented the majority of prisoners of that age (figure 17).

In 2013, 60% of prisoners age 55 or older were admitted 

when they were 54 or younger and aged into the oldest group 

(78,400 of the 131,500 prisoners in this group), up from 31% 

(8,000) in 1993 and 54% (31,500) in 2003. In comparison, 

there were 53,100 admissions of persons age 55 or older 

in 2013, 18,400 of which occurred in 2013, and 34,700 of 

which had occurred prior to 2013 of individuals age 55 or 

older. At yearend 2013, a total of 489,500 state prisoners 

had aged into a higher age group than the ones to which 

they were admitted, representing 37% of the state prison 

population on December 31. In contrast, 23% (194,300 

prisoners) of the yearend prison population in 1993 and 32% 

(406,700 prisoners) of the total population in 2003 aged into 

higher groups.

Percent

0

10

20

30

40

50

60 55 or older

45–54

35–44

25–34

1993 2003 2013

Year

FIGURE 17

Percent contribution of sentenced state prisoners aging 

into the prison population, by age, yearend 1993, 2003, 

and 2013

Note: Based on prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year under the jurisdiction 

of state correctional authorities on a new court commitment. Persons within a 

different age category at date of admission than at yearend were classified as 

having aged into the next age group. See appendix table 5 for standard errors of 

the 1993 estimates.

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Corrections Reporting Program, 

1993, 2003, and 2013.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 27

Persons who aged in to a higher group had not necessarily 

spent a long time in state prison. A person could be admitted 

at age 54 and serve only 1 year before aging into the age 55 

or older group. However, between 1993 and 2013, an 

increasing number and proportion of the prison population 

age 35 or older aged into higher age categories than the 

ones they were admitted to because they had spent 10 years 

or more in prison on their current confinement. A total of 

51,500 of the 78,400 prisoners who had aged in to the age 55 

or older group (66%) at yearend 2013 had served 10 years 

or more in prison, compared to 29% of prisoners age 55 or 

older at yearend 1993. In 1993, 25,400 prisoners age 35 or 

older (3% of the total yearend state prison population) had 

served 10 years or more and aged into a higher group. By 

2003, this group included 114,300 prisoners (9% of the total 

population). On December 31, 2013, 14% of the state prison 

population (189,700 prisoners) were age 35 or older and had 

been imprisoned for 10 years or more. 

As expected, very few prisoners aged into the 18 to 24 group 

in 1993, 2003, or 2013. New admissions in 1993 accounted 

for 38% of the persons in that age group. Sixty-two percent 

of these admissions occurred in a previous year when they 

were at least age 18 but younger than age 24, so in 1993 

they were still 24 or younger at yearend. In 2003 and 2013, 

the distribution of new and older admissions evened out so 

that both contributed roughly half of the prisoners in the 

age group.

Conclusion

Longer sentences, more time served, and increased 

admissions among older offenders led to aging in the state 

prison population

Between 1993 and 2003, increases in the number of persons 

in state prison at yearend and in the number of admissions 

disproportionately affected persons ages 45 to 49; however, 

from 2003 to 2013, growth occurred predominantly among 

those age 55 or older. A number of factors contributed to 

the increase in the mean age of the state prison population 

between 1993 and 2013, including higher rates of admissions 

of older offenders and growth in both the sentences imposed 

and time served for this age group. Integral to all of these 

factors is the type of crime committed and the fact that older 

offenders have a longer criminal history that can make them 

eligible for enhanced sentences under the multiple strikes 

laws adopted by states.

While the U.S. resident population has also aged over the 

past 20 years, this change in underlying age structure does 

not solely explain the increase in the number of older 

offenders in state prison admissions or yearend prison 

populations. Arrests did increase for persons age 40 or older 

between 1993 and 2013, but it was the higher imprisonment 

rate among those arrested for this age group that led to the 

growth in state prison admissions. Likewise, the increase in 

admissions of persons age 55 or older cannot fully account 

for the overall age increase in the prison population over 

time. The greater proportion of prisoners in this age group 

convicted of violent offenses contributed to longer sentence 

lengths imposed and actual time served than was observed 

for younger offenders.

The increase in the number of older prisoners caused by 

longer stays in prison, along with increasing numbers of 

admissions of violent offenders age 55 or older, caused the 

dramatic growth of older prisoners. In 2013, they accounted 

for 10% of the yearend state prison population and 4% 

of annual admissions (up from 3% and 1% in 1993). The 

changing age structure in the U.S. state prison population 

has implications for the future management and care of 

inmates. Efforts to reduce the number of older persons in 

prison must address both the rate at which these offenders 

are imprisoned and the amount of time they spend serving 

their sentences.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 28

Methodology

Data sources

National Corrections Reporting Program

The National Corrections Reporting Program (NCRP) 

is an annual voluntary data collection of administrative 

records on individual prison inmates submitted by state 

departments of corrections, the California Youth Authority, 

and until 1996, the District of Columbia. From its inception 

in 1983 to 1998, the NCRP collected records from 30 to 39 

jurisdictions for each prison admission and prison release. 

In 1999, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) requested 

that states submit an additional file that includes the 

administrative records of all inmates under the custody of 

state prisons on December 31 of each year. The U.S. Census 

Bureau served as the data collection agent for the NCRP 

from 1983 to 2009, at which point BJS opened a competitive 

solicitation and awarded data collection responsibilities to 

Abt Associates, Inc. In 2013, 50 jurisdictions submitted at 

least one type of record (prison admission, prison release, 

prison yearend population, or release from post-custody 

community supervision).

The current analysis includes data from the newly created 

2000–2013 NCRP term records, which link prison 

admission, yearend census, and prison release records for 

states with reliable prison inmate identifiers. In the process 

of creating term records, adjustments were made to the 

original submitted data to resolve incongruous prison terms. 

Ninety-five percent of original NCRP records required no 

adjustments. Of the remaining 5% that required resolution, 

2% had overlapping prison terms for the same individual 

that could be collapsed into a single term. The remainder 

required removal of duplicate records or, in the case of states 

that do not submit all NCRP record types, the imputation of 

missing prison admission or yearend census records based 

on information obtained from release records. 

In 2003, the number of states with term records constructed 

was 26, compared to 40 in 2013. NCRP data from states that 

do not submit the identifiers necessary to construct term 

records are also included in the analysis on aging in prison.

National Prisoner Statistics program

While some states do not participate in the NCRP, it 

is a critical part of BJS’s statistical program because it 

complements the aggregate prison statistics collected under 

the National Prisoner Statistics (NPS) program. The NPS 

does not include information on state prisoners’ offenses, 

age, time served, education, or detailed sentence data. The 

individual-level data obtained through the NCRP allow 

these variables to be examined in conjunction with other 

variables, such as prison admission and release type, sex, and 

race or Hispanic origin. 

BJS uses both the NPS and NCRP to compile the annual 

Prisoners reports. Tables on age and offense distribution in 

state prisons are the result of a ratio adjustment to the NCRP 

data to obtain the total prison population that all 50 states 

report in the NPS. In 1993, 2003, and 2013, NCRP records 

were available for 80% to 87% of sentenced NPS prison 

admissions and for 81% to 86% of sentenced prison releases. 

In 2003 and 2013, records were available for 83% to 88% of 

the yearend prison population (table 19). 

TABLE 19

Number of NCRP records compared to NPS sentenced jurisdiction counts, by record type, 1993, 2003, and 2013

1993 2003 2013

Record type

Number 

of records

Number of states 

submitting data

Percent of 

NPS covered 

by NCRP

Number 

of records

Number of states 

submitting data

Percent of 

NPS covered 

by NCRP

Number 

of records

Number of states 

submitting datab

Percent of 

NPS covered 

by NCRP

NPSa

Admissions 493,160 50 ~ 644,434 50 ~ 579,773 49 ~

Releases 437,099 50 ~ 618,658 50 ~ 574,881 49 ~

Yearend population 857,675 50 ~ 1,256,442 50 ~ 1,325,305 49 ~

NCRP

Admissions 416,289 37 84.4% 560,994 37 87.1% 463,268 43 79.9%

Releases 361,268 36 82.7 533,884 37 86.3 467,072 43 81.2

Yearend population ... ... : 1,042,605 33 83.0 1,172,540 44 88.5

Note: Based on prisoners admitted to prison, released from prison, or under the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities at yearend. Includes only persons sentenced 

to more than 1 year of imprisonment. See Methodology.

...Not available. Data for 1993 yearend prison population were obtained from 1991 Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities.

: Not calculated.

~Not applicable.

aNPS data are aggregated counts of persons sentenced to more than 1 year under state jurisdiction.

bNevada did not provide NPS data in 2013. Data were imputed using statistics presented by the Nevada Department of Corrections on its website. See Prisoners in 2013

(NCJ 247282, BJS web, September 2014).

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics (NPS) program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; and National Corrections Reporting Program (NCRP), 1993, 2003, 

and 2013.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 29

While more states submitted NCRP data in 2013 than 

in 2003, a smaller percentage of NPS admissions and 

releases was represented in 2013 due in part to definitional 

differences in the two collections. NCRP requests that 

states submit all admissions to the physical custody of 

public and private facilities, while NPS asks for admissions 

to the states’ legal authority, or jurisdiction, which could 

include admissions to local jails or out-of-state facilities. In 

2013, both Texas and Washington admitted offenders with 

sentences of one year or less, or admissions on violations of 

parole, to local jails. These admissions were reported to NPS, 

but not included in the states’ NCRP admissions records.

The current report makes the assumption that the 

demographic, offense, and sentencing characteristics do 

not differ for prisoners for whom NCRP records were not 

collected during reporting years 1993, 2003, and 2013. 

Unless otherwise noted, BJS used all types of admission to 

or release from state prison in this analysis; these counts will 

differ from the admission and release totals published in the 

annual Prisoners report, which exclude transfers, escapes, 

and persons absent without leave (AWOL).

Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities

To obtain the characteristics of the 1993 yearend prison 

population, BJS used age, sex, race or Hispanic origin, 

offense, and admission type distributions from the 1991 

Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities (SISCF) 

and applied them to NPS control totals from the 1993 

prison population. In-person interviews were conducted 

with 13,986 state prison inmates. The interviews included 

questions on current and prior offenses committed, drug and 

alcohol use, demographic characteristics, family situation, 

and custody and community corrections sentencing. Based 

on the sample strata, BJS developed weights to adjust for 

nonresponse and to project the results of the survey onto 

the 1991 yearend prison population derived from the NPS. 

For a more detailed review of the SISCF methodology, see 

Survey of State Prison Inmates, 1991 (NCJ 136949, BJS web, 

March 1993).

Because the estimates for the December 31, 1993 state 

prison population are based on a sample compared to a 

complete roster of inmates, sampling error is associated with 

the counts and percentages shown in this report. Based on 

the size of the estimate, sampling error describes chance 

variation of the sample estimate from the population value. 

Estimates of the standard error for the 1991 SISCF for all 

inmates and sex- and race-specific breakdowns of the prison 

population can be used to calculate 95% confidence intervals 

around reported counts and percentages for the 1993 

estimates (appendix tables 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 10). For example, 

the 95% confidence interval for the estimate of males ages 

25 to 29 years in 1993 (see table 4) would be—

195,600 - (4,300*1.96) and 195,600 + (4,300*1.96)

Or, 187,200 to 204,000.

Similarly, the percentage of state prison inmates ages 25 

to 29 in 1993 (see table 1) would have a 95% confidence 

interval of, using the base estimate of 208,400:

24.3% - (0.5*1.96) and 24.3% + (0.5*1.96)

Or, 23.3% to 25.3%.

The distributions of race and Hispanic origin from the 

1991 and 2004 SISCF were applied to the NCRP and 

NPS administrative data to adjust for the differences 

between administrative and self-report race data. See the 

section on Adjustment of administrative data on race and 

Hispanic origin.

Mixed use of administrative and self-report data

NCRP did not begin to collect yearend state prison 

population data until 1999. As previously stated, data 

from the 1991 SISCF, weighted to 1993 population totals, 

were used to represent a cross-section of the 1993 prison 

population for this report. Since the two data collections 

employ different modes (official records from state 

departments of corrections for NCRP, and inmate selfreport through an interview for SISCF), some variation 

is expected in the distributions for variables they have in 

common. Previous analyses used the 1991 SISCF offense 

distribution as a base on which to add subsequent years’ 

admissions and subtract releases from NCRP data to project 
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 30

forward and backward for years between inmate surveys. A 

comparison of the percent distribution of offenses in 1993 

estimated through this stock-flow method to that produced 

in this report (calculated by weighting the 1991 SISCF 

offense distribution to the 1993 total state prison population 

count) shows that there are few differences between the two 

methods (table 20). A further comparison of data from the 

2004 SISCF and 2003 NCRP, the first time both collections 

were fielded in the same year, shows that the distributions 

between self-reported and administrative data are close 

(table 21).

Uniform Crime Reports

National estimates of arrests by offense were obtained 

from the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reports, which are available 

through BJS’s arrest data online analysis tool (http://www.

bjs.gov/index.cfm?ty=datool&surl=/arrests/index.cfm).

U.S. Census resident population

Counts for the U.S. resident population on January 1 of 1994 

and 2004, which were stratified by sex and single-year of 

age, were downloaded from the historical estimates section 

of the U.S. Census Bureau’s website. Intercensal resident 

population estimates are available at http://www.census.gov/

popest/data/national/asrh/1990s/nat_monthly_resident.

html (January 1, 1994) and http://www.census.gov/popest/

data/intercensal/national/nat2010.html (January 1, 2004). 

The U.S. Census Bureau provided BJS an estimate for the 

U.S. resident population on January 1, 2014, based on the 

2010 decennial census.

TABLE 21 

Offense distribution of state prison population, by method 

of data collection, 2003 and 2004

Most serious offense 2003 NCRP 2004 SISCF

Total 100% 100%

Violent offenses 48.0% 47.9%

Homicidea 12.3 12.1

Rape/sexual assault 11.2 10.7

Robbery 12.6 12.7

Assault 9.4 10.2

Other violent 2.6 2.2

Property offenses 20.9% 18.8%

Burglary 10.0 8.2

Larceny 4.1 3.9

Motor vehicle theft 1.5 1.7

Fraud 2.8 2.9

Other property 2.4 2.1

Drug offensesb 21.5% 21.3%

Public order offensesc 8.7% 11.9%

Other/unspecified 

offensesd 0.9% 0.2%

Note: Based on sentenced prisoners under the jurisdiction of state correctional 

authorities. Detail may not sum to total due to rounding.

aIncludes murder and manslaughter.

bIncludes possession, trafficking, and other drug offenses.

cIncludes weapons, driving under the influence, court offenses, commercialized 

vice, morals, and decency offenses, liquor law violations and other public order 

offenses.

dIncludes juvenile offenses and other unspecified offense categories.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Corrections Reporting Program 

(NCRP), 2003; and Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities (SISCF), 2004.

TABLE 20

Offense distribution of yearend 1993 state prison 

population, by method of estimation

Stock-flow forward 

and backward 

estimation

1991 SISCF distribution 

applied 1993 to 

population total

Most serious offense Count Percent Count Percent

Totala 828,566 100% 857,675 100%

Violent offenses 395,700 47.8% 393,500 45.9%

Murderb 90,300 10.9 86,200 10.1

Manslaughter 14,800 1.8 16,500 1.9

Rape/sexual assault 81,100 9.8 82,300 9.6

Robbery 119,800 14.5 124,000 14.5

Assault 73,000 8.8 70,200 8.2

Other violent 16,600 2.0 14,300 1.7

Property offenses 191,600 23.1% 213,400 24.9%

Burglary 93,600 11.3 106,300 12.4

Larceny 36,900 4.5 41,800 4.9

Motor vehicle theft 19,100 2.3 18,800 2.2

Fraud 21,300 2.6 25,100 2.9

Other property 20,700 2.5 21,300 2.5

Drug offensesc 183,200 22.1% 189,200 22.1%

Public order offensesd 53,800 6.5% 58,200 6.8%

Other/unspecified offensese 4,400 0.5% 3,300 0.4%

Note: Based on sentenced prisoners under the jurisdiction of state correctional 

authorities. Detail may not sum to total due to rounding. Total counts differ due 

to updated data. Distribution for stock-flow forward and backward estimation 

obtained from tables 1.13 and 1.14 in Correctional Populations in the United States, 

1996 (NCJ 170013, BJS web, April 1999).

aIncludes inmates age 17 or younger.

bIncludes nonnegligent manslaughter.

cIncludes possession, trafficking, and other drug offenses.

dIncludes weapons, driving under the influence, court offenses, commercialized 

vice, morals, and decency offenses, liquor law violations, and other public order 

offenses.

eIncludes juvenile offenses and other unspecified offense categories.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993; 

Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities (SISCF), 1991; and National 

Corrections Reporting Program, 1993.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 31

Calculations

All analyses were conducted in SAS Enterprise Guide 9.2 

and were limited to inmates sentenced to more than 1 year 

in state prison. Data from Maryland were removed from 

the NCRP analysis because the submitted records do not 

identify admission and release types.

Mean time expected to be served at the time of admission

The estimated mean time expected to be served at the time 

of admission was calculated using the following equation:

Mean time expected to be served = (Pt/At)*12

where:

t = year

P = number of sentenced prisoners at yearend

A = number of new court commitment admissions

This estimate includes all time served on the original 

sentence, including any additional time served by parole 

or community release violations. Estimates of mean time 

to be served based on admitted prisoners can be biased if 

there are changes in the prison population size.4 Because 

the state prison population increase between 1993 and 2013, 

the following adjustment was applied to reduce the bias 

introduced by changes in the population size:

Adjusted mean time expected to be served = 

(1/(At/(Pt*(1-r))))*12

where all terms are as assigned above, except—

r = mean growth rate, calculated as ln(Pt/Pt-1)

4Patterson, E.J. and Preston, S.H. (2008). Estimating mean length of stay in 

prisons: methods and applications. Journal of Quantitative Criminology, 24, 

33–29.

Adjustment of administrative data on race and 

Hispanic origin

National-level estimates of the number of persons by race 

and Hispanic origin under the jurisdiction of state prisons 

were calculated by adjusting the administrative NPS and 

NCRP data to more accurately represent self-reported race 

and Hispanic origin. For this report, data from the 1991 

SISCF were used to calculate the ratio used for statistics on 

racial distributions in 1993, while the 2004 SISCF was used 

for the 2003 and 2013 distributions. The ratio obtained by 

comparing the within-year relative distributions by race and 

Hispanic origin was then multiplied by the NPS distribution 

in a year to generate the estimate of persons by race and 

Hispanic origin.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 32

APPENDIX TABLE 1

Standard errors for figure 1: Sentenced state prisoners, by 

age, December 31, 1993

Age at yearend Number

18–39 1,300

40–54 3,600

55 or older 1,800

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, Survey of Inmates in State Correctional 

Facilities, 1991.

APPENDIX TABLE 2

Standard errors for table 1 and figure 5: Sentenced state 

prisoners, by age, December 31, 1993

Age at yearend Number Percent

18–19 1,800 1.5%

20–24 4,000 0.6

25–29 4,300 0.5

30–34 4,100 0.6

35–39 3,500 0.7

40–44 2,900 0.9

45–49 2,000 1.3

50–54 1,500 1.8

55–59 1,200 2.2

60–64 1,000 2.8

65 or older 900 3.1

40–54 3,600 0.7%

55 or older 1,800 1.5

Mean ~ 0.6 years

~Not applicable.

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, Survey of Inmates in State Correctional 

Facilities, 1991.

APPENDIX TABLE 3

Standard errors for table 4 and table 5: Sentenced state prisoners, by age, race, and Hispanic origin, December 31, 1993

Age at yearend Male Female White Black Hispanic

Total* : : 4,700 4,800 3,300

18–19 1,800 100 900 1,400 600

20–24 4,000 300 2,500 3,000 1,600

25–29 4,300 400 2,800 3,300 1,900

30–34 4,100 400 2,700 3,100 1,600

35–39 3,500 400 2,200 2,500 1,300

40–44 2,900 300 1,900 1,900 1,000

45–49 2,000 200 1,500 1,100 700

50–54 1,500 100 1,100 800 500

55–59 1,300 100 900 600 500

60–64 1,000 100 700 500 300

65 or older 900 100 600 600 100

:Not calculated.

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991.

APPENDIX TABLE 4

Standard errors for figure 9a, figure 9b, figure 9c, figure 10, and figure 11: Sentenced state prisoners, by most serious offense 

and age at yearend, December 31, 1993

Most serious offense 18–24 25–34 35–44 45–54 55 or older

Violent offenses 0.9% 0.6% 0.8% 1.4% 1.9%

Murder 2.3 1.3 1.6 2.5 3.2

Rape/sexual assault 2.6 1.4 1.6 2.4 2.9

Property offenses 1.0% 0.8% 1.2% 2.9% 4.5%

Drug offenses 1.2% 0.8% 1.2% 2.4% 3.8%

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 33

APPENDIX TABLE 5

Standard errors for table 18 and figure 19: Percent 

contribution of sentenced state prisoners aging into the 

prison population, December 31, 1993

Age at yearend Number Percent

18–24 4,200 0.6%

25–34 4,700 0.4

35–44 4,200 0.6

45–54 2,500 1.1

55 or older 1,800 1.5

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, Survey of Inmates in State Correctional 

Facilities, 1991.

APPENDIX TABLE 6

Proportion of total change in yearend prison population, 

by age, December 31, 1993, 2003, and 2013

Age at yearend 1993–2003 2003–2013 1993–2013

Total* 100% 100% 100%

18–19 -1.2 -12.3 -2.8

20–24 8.1 -49.6 -0.4

25–29 2.1 -5.1 1.0

30–34 5.7 21.5 8.0

35–39 19.6 -23.3 13.3

40–44 26.7 -35.1 17.6

45–49 20.8 27.5 21.8

50–54 11.0 72.0 20.0

55–59 4.7 53.3 11.8

60–64 1.8 28.2 5.7

65 or older 1.5 24.8 4.9

40–54 58.5% 64.4% 59.4%

55 or older 8.0 106.3 22.5

Total change 

 (all ages)* 398,767 68,863 467,630

Note: Based on sentenced prisoners under the jurisdiction of state correctional 

authorities. Detail may not sum to total due to rounding.

*Includes prisoners age 17 or younger.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 

2003, and 2013; and National Corrections Reporting Program, 1993, 2003, 

and 2013.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 34

APPENDIX TABLE 8

Proportion of total change in yearend prison population, by age and race, December 31, 1993, 2003, and 2013

1993–2003 2003–2013 1993–2013

Age at yearend Whitea Blacka Hispanic Whitea Blacka Hispanic Whitea Blacka Hispanic

Totalb 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

18–19 -0.6% -4.2% 0.7% -7.4% 58.8% -8.3% -2.6% -7.5% -0.6%

20–24 1.8 3.1 15.7 -29.8 178.0 -48.9 -7.4 -6.1 6.1

25–29 -8.9 -5.4 13.6 18.1 139.4 -17.9 -1.0 -13.1 8.9

30–34 -0.9 -0.6 15.5 19.6 32.5 30.6 5.1 -2.4 17.8

35–39 23.8 21.9 16.3 -16.0 208.3 16.6 12.1 12.0 16.3

40–44 34.3 34.6 17.2 -21.6 267.9 9.4 18.0 22.3 16.0

45–49 24.9 31.1 10.6 19.6 -62.3 28.7 23.4 36.0 13.3

50–54 13.0 15.4 6.0 49.1 -298.2 37.9 23.5 32.0 10.8

55–59 6.7 5.5 2.0 31.3 -252.7 26.5 13.9 19.1 5.7

60–64 3.0 1.1 1.2 17.1 -121.7 14.1 7.2 7.6 3.2

65 or older 3.2 0.1 1.3 20.8 -60.9 12.5 8.3 3.3 3.0

40–54 72.3% 81.1% 33.8% 47.1% -92.7% 76.1% 64.9% 90.2% 40.2%

55 or older 12.9 6.7 4.6 69.3 -435.3 53.1 29.4 30.0 11.8

Total change (all ages)b 109,820 121,057 113,297 45,418 -6,068 19,882 155,238 114,988 133,179

Note: Based on sentenced prisoners under the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. Detail may not sum to total due to rounding.

aExcludes persons of Hispanic or Latino origin.

bIncludes prisoners age 17 or younger.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991 and 2004; and 

National Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013.

APPENDIX TABLE 7

Proportion of total change in yearend prison population, by age and sex, December 31, 1993, 2003, and 2013

1993–2003 2003–2013 1993–2013

Age at yearend Male Female Male Female Male Female

Total* 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

18–19 -1.4 0.7 -13.6 -3.7 -3.1 -0.2

20–24 8.2 6.9 -56.8 -0.4 -1.0 5.4

25–29 2.3 0.0 -12.2 43.7 0.3 8.9

30–34 5.4 9.2 20.4 29.6 7.5 13.4

35–39 19.1 24.7 -21.3 -36.7 13.4 12.2

40–44 26.5 29.2 -35.8 -30.0 17.7 17.1

45–49 21.1 17.5 28.4 21.0 22.1 18.2

50–54 11.4 7.2 76.9 38.7 20.7 13.6

55–59 4.9 2.6 57.9 21.9 12.4 6.5

60–64 1.9 1.1 30.8 10.0 6.0 2.9

65 or older 1.6 0.7 27.5 6.6 5.2 1.9

40–54 59.0% 60.9% 69.5% 29.6% 60.5% 48.9%

55 or older 8.4 4.4 116.2 38.5 23.6 11.3

Total change (all ages)* 364,451 34,316 60,083 8,780 424,534 43,096

Note: Based on sentenced prisoners under the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. Detail may not sum to total due to rounding. 

*Includes prisoners age 17 or younger.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991; and National 

Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 35

APPENDIX TABLE 9

Number of sentenced state prisoners, by age at yearend and most serious offense, December 31, 1993, 2003, and 2013

Totala 18–29 30–39 40–54 55 or older

Most serious offense 1993 2003 2013 1993 2003 2013 1993 2003 2013 1993 2003 2013 1993 2003 2013

Totala 857,675 1,256,442 1,325,305 400,700 436,800 390,600 298,300 399,100 397,900 126,300 359,700 404,100 26,300 58,300 131,500

Violent offenses 393,500 603,000 705,000 167,800 208,800 201,700 136,700 181,200 199,400 68,400 172,400 217,400 17,100 39,700 87,000

Murderb 86,200 140,100 165,500 27,700 40,700 30,900 32,000 43,400 52,300 20,300 43,500 56,100 5,700 13,200 27,000

Manslaughter 16,500 14,200 18,000 7,500 5,200 5,400 5,200 4,300 5,700 3,000 3,900 5,000 800 900 1,800

Rape/sexual assault 82,300 140,300 166,300 24,300 29,600 27,400 29,200 40,800 38,000 21,500 54,300 67,000 7,300 17,300 35,600

Robbery 124,000 158,000 181,300 69,000 73,700 80,600 41,800 45,800 48,900 10,500 33,100 41,000 900 3,100 9,200

Assault 70,200 117,500 132,600 33,000 48,400 45,900 23,400 36,000 41,400 10,900 28,300 35,600 2,100 3,800 9,100

Other 14,300 32,900 41,300 6,400 11,200 11,400 5,100 11,000 13,000 2,200 9,200 12,700 400 1,500 4,200

Property offenses 213,400 263,000 255,600 114,600 94,000 90,800 73,400 86,800 72,200 20,700 75,100 75,400 2,900 6,300 16,200

Burglary 106,300 125,600 139,600 58,700 48,100 57,200 37,700 39,600 36,200 8,100 34,900 37,500 700 2,300 7,900

Larceny 41,800 51,700 50,000 20,300 15,200 13,700 13,900 17,300 14,600 6,500 17,400 17,600 800 1,900 4,200

Motor vehicle theft 18,800 19,400 10,800 13,300 9,000 3,800 4,400 6,400 3,500 800 3,500 3,000 200 200 400

Fraud 25,100 35,600 27,300 11,500 9,900 6,300 9,400 13,500 9,300 3,400 11,100 9,500 900 1,200 2,100

Other 21,300 30,600 28,000 10,800 11,700 9,800 7,900 9,900 8,600 2,000 8,100 7,800 500 700 1,600

Drug offensesc 189,200 270,000 207,800 91,200 94,700 53,700 67,200 91,200 78,500 26,100 76,200 61,400 4,100 7,500 13,600

Public order offensesd 58,200 109,000 146,300 25,500 34,800 40,800 20,000 36,600 44,400 10,600 33,300 47,100 2,000 4,200 13,900

Other/unspecified offensese 3,300 11,400 10,600 1,600 4,600 3,500 1,000 3,300 3,300 500 2,800 2,800 200 600 800

Note: Based on sentenced prisoners under the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. Detail may not sum to total due to rounding. See appendix table 11 for standard errors of the 1993 estimates.

aIncludes prisoners age 17 or younger.

bIncludes nonnegligent manslaughter.

cIncludes possession, trafficking, and other drug offenses.

dIncludes weapon offenses; driving under the influence; court offenses; commercialized vice, morals, and decency offenses; liquor law violations; and other public order offenses.

eIncludes juvenile offenses and other unspecified offense categories.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991; and National Corrections Reporting Program, 2003 and 2013.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 36

APPENDIX TABLE 10

Standard errors for appendix table 9: Number of sentenced state prisoners, by age at yearend and most serious offense, 

December 31, 1993

Most serious offense Total 18–29 30–39 40–54 55 or older

Total : 4,700 4,700 3,600 1,800

Violent offenses 4,700 4,000 3,700 2,800 1,400

Murder 3,100 1,800 2,000 1,600 800

Manslaughter 1,400 1,000 800 600 300

Rape/sexual assault 3,000 1,700 1,900 1,600 900

Robbery 3,600 2,800 2,200 1,100 300

Any assault 2,800 2,000 1,700 1,200 500

Other violent 1,300 900 800 500 200

Property offenses 4,300 3,500 2,900 1,600 600

Burglary 3,400 2,600 2,100 1,000 300

Larceny 2,200 1,600 1,300 900 300

Motor vehicle theft 1,500 1,300 700 300 200

Fraud 1,700 1,200 1,100 600 300

Other property 1,600 1,200 1,000 500 200

Drug offenses 4,200 3,200 2,800 1,800 700

Public order offenses 2,600 1,800 1,600 1,100 500

Other/unspecified offenses 600 400 400 200 200

:Not calculated.

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities, 1991.
AGING OF THE STATE PRISON POPULATION, 1993–2013 | MAY 2016 37

APPENDIX TABLE 11

New court commitment admissions to state prisons, by age at admission and most serious offense, 1993, 2003, and 2013

Totala 18–29 30–39 40–54 55 or older

Most serious offense 1993 2003 2013 1993 2003 2013 1993 2003 2013 1993 2003 2013 1993 2003 2013

Total 318,100 399,800 406,000 172,200 184,100 174,200 98,500 116,500 118,300 36,200 86,700 93,700 4,600 8,500 17,800

Violent offenses 87,100 97,500 115,600 49,900 50,100 57,400 22,600 24,800 29,200 9,400 17,600 22,600 1,900 2,800 5,400

Murderb 8,700 7,800 8,800 5,300 4,300 4,600 1,700 1,800 2,100 1,000 1,300 1,600 200 300 500

Manslaughter 3,800 2,500 2,700 2,100 1,200 1,300 900 600 700 600 500 600 100 100 200

Rape/sexual assault 18,000 21,400 21,300 6,800 8,200 7,700 6,200 6,300 5,500 3,600 5,300 5,800 1,100 1,600 2,300

Robbery 28,700 26,100 30,000 19,600 16,900 19,700 6,200 5,200 5,700 1,300 2,800 3,500 100 200 500

Assault 23,200 31,700 42,300 13,500 15,700 19,400 6,100 8,700 12,000 2,400 6,100 9,100 300 600 1,600

Other violent 4,600 7,900 10,500 2,600 3,800 4,700 1,400 2,300 3,100 500 1,600 2,200 100 100 400

Property offenses 96,600 109,600 119,000 54,200 52,500 55,100 30,200 32,500 32,700 9,500 22,400 26,800 800 1,400 3,900

Burglary 39,200 38,500 51,200 24,200 21,700 29,400 11,200 9,700 11,900 2,700 6,400 8,600 100 300 1,100

Larceny 25,800 27,200 30,500 12,300 10,300 10,700 9,300 8,900 9,000 3,500 7,300 9,100 300 600 1,600

Motor vehicle theft 7,000 9,800 5,200 4,800 5,700 2,300 1,600 2,600 1,600 400 1,200 1,100 0 100 100

Fraud 12,800 20,900 16,000 5,800 7,800 5,300 4,900 7,600 5,500 1,900 5,100 4,600 200 400 700

Other property 11,900 13,300 16,000 7,100 6,900 7,500 3,300 3,700 4,700 1,000 2,400 3,400 100 100 500

Drug offensesc 92,800 120,600 96,300 49,200 54,500 35,400 30,900 36,500 33,800 10,800 27,400 23,300 1,000 2,100 3,900

Public order offensesd 31,700 55,300 69,300 13,700 19,300 23,700 11,600 17,800 20,900 5,200 15,400 19,700 800 1,800 4,300

Other/unspecified offensese 3,600 3,100 3,600 2,000 1,600 1,700 1,100 900 1,100 400 600 700 0 100 100

Note: Based on sentenced prisoners admitted on new court commitments to the jurisdiction of state correctional authorities. Detail may not sum to total due to rounding.

aIncludes prisoners age 17 or younger.

bIncludes nonnegligent manslaughter.

cIncludes possession, trafficking, and other drug offenses.

dIncludes weapon offenses; driving under the influence; court offenses; commercialized vice, morals, and decency offenses; liquor law violations; and other public order offenses.

eIncludes juvenile offenses and other unspecified offense categories.

Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics program, 1993, 2003, and 2013; and National Corrections Reporting Program, 1993, 2003, and 2013.
Office of Justice Programs

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www.ojp.usdoj.gov

NCJ248766

The Bureau of Justice Statistics of the U.S. Department of Justice is the principal 

federal agency responsible for measuring crime, criminal victimization, criminal 

offenders, victims of crime, correlates of crime, and the operation of criminal 

and civil justice systems at the federal, state, tribal, and local levels. BJS collects, 

analyzes, and disseminates reliable and valid statistics on crime and justice 

systems in the United States, supports improvements to state and local criminal 

justice information systems, and participates with national and international 

organizations to develop and recommend national standards for justice statistics. 

Jeri M. Mulrow is acting director.

This report was written by E. Ann Carson and William Sabol. Laura Maruschak, 

Todd Minton, Lauren Glaze, Tom Bonczar, and Zhen Zeng verified the report.

Irene Cooperman and Jill Thomas edited the report, and Barbara Quinn and Tina 

Dorsey produced the report.

May 2016, NCJ 248766