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Table 5 on page 17 http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/p14.pdf http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/p14.pdf of this report from BJS shows that half of federal pris

Table 5 on page 17 http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/p14.pdf http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/p14.pdf of this report from BJS shows that half of federal prison inmates are incarcerated for drug offenses. I'd accept the notion that some of those drug offenders may have been violent, but not all of them. I suspect the violent crime statistic from ProCon rests on the habit of police and prosecutors of escalating charges for suspects where drugs are found for things that wouldn't ordinarily even be criminal (such has having a weapon in one's home).

rayiner 11y ago
Having a weapon during a drug deal is a sentencing enhancement, not a different crime. There are non-violent weapons crimes (e.g. felon in possession), but those fall under the "public order" category (see footnote c). And remember, the vast majority of violent crimes do not fall within federal jurisdiction, so it's unsurprising that a disproportionate number of federal prisoners are in for drug crimes or other non-violent crimes (e.g. white collar crimes). But most prisoners are in state rather than federal prison.
tptacek 11y ago
The overwhelming majority of prisoners are in state prisons, where something like 17% of inmates are incarcerated for drug offenses. The majority of inmates are in fact incarcerated for violent crimes.
- fnordfnordfnord 11y ago
  Yeah, I used the federal statistics because it's easier to find the data. Rayiner made a reasonable point about the difference in federal vs state inmates. >where something like 17% of inmates are incarcerated for drug offenses. I hope you don't mind if I use a single state, I know these thing will vary by state. The top drug crimes in Texas are different degrees of possession and manufacturing and distribution, and you're right, it's about 17% >The majority of inmates are in fact incarcerated for violent crimes. There are other crimes that aren't violent and aren't drug offenses, those appear to be about 43% (60% when you include drug offenses), and the violent ones about 40%, not a majority. Do you have a source for your "majority of inmates are in fact incarcerated for violent crimes" claim? The statistics I used are by offense, not by offender. I'm not sure how that will change if the statistics are broken down by offender. https://www.texastribune.org/library/data/texas-prisons/crimes/ https://www.texastribune.org/library/data/texas-prisons/crim...

rayiner 11y ago

Having a weapon during a drug deal is a sentencing enhancement, not a different crime. There are non-violent weapons crimes (e.g. felon in possession), but those fall under the "public order" category (see footnote c). And remember, the vast majority of violent crimes do not fall within federal jurisdiction, so it's unsurprising that a disproportionate number of federal prisoners are in for drug crimes or other non-violent crimes (e.g. white collar crimes). But most prisoners are in state rather than federal prison.

tptacek 11y ago

The overwhelming majority of prisoners are in state prisons, where something like 17% of inmates are incarcerated for drug offenses. The majority of inmates are in fact incarcerated for violent crimes.

fnordfnordfnord 11y ago
Yeah, I used the federal statistics because it's easier to find the data. Rayiner made a reasonable point about the difference in federal vs state inmates. >where something like 17% of inmates are incarcerated for drug offenses. I hope you don't mind if I use a single state, I know these thing will vary by state. The top drug crimes in Texas are different degrees of possession and manufacturing and distribution, and you're right, it's about 17% >The majority of inmates are in fact incarcerated for violent crimes. There are other crimes that aren't violent and aren't drug offenses, those appear to be about 43% (60% when you include drug offenses), and the violent ones about 40%, not a majority. Do you have a source for your "majority of inmates are in fact incarcerated for violent crimes" claim? The statistics I used are by offense, not by offender. I'm not sure how that will change if the statistics are broken down by offender. https://www.texastribune.org/library/data/texas-prisons/crimes/ https://www.texastribune.org/library/data/texas-prisons/crim...