December 1, 2009

Probation and Parole in the United States, 2008

This article was written by Lauren E. Glaze, statistician, BJS, and Thomas P. Bonczar, statistician, BJS. At yearend 2008, 5.09 million offenders were under community supervision - the equivalent of about 1 in every 45 adults in the United States. The community supervision population includes adults on probation and adults on parole. Probationers represented 84% of offenders under community supervision. Parolees accounted for 16% of this population. During 2008 the community supervision population grew 0.9%. Between 2000 and 2003 this population experienced its fastest rate of growth, growing at a rate three times faster than the average annual increase between 2003 and 2008. The fastest period of growth in the probation population occurred between 2000 and 2003. Since 2003 the average annual rate of growth in the probation population has slowed. Between 2003 and 2008 the probation population increased at an average annual rate that was less than a third of its average annual increase between 2000 and 2003. Between 2000 and 2003 the parole population increased an average of 2.1% annually before slowing to an average increase of 0.7% per year between 2003 and 2005.