ORG 5574 - 5

  The United States has the highest reported incarceration rate in the world. While the U.S. currently incarcerates 750 inmates per 100,000 persons, the world average rate is 166 per 100,000 persons. Russia, the country with the second-highest incarceration rate, imprisons 624 inmates per 100,000 persons.  Compared to its democratic, advanced market economy counterparts, the U.S. has more people in prison by several orders of magnitude. Although crime rates have decreased since 1990, the rate of imprisonment has continued to increase. Please discuss the economic and social implications of this public policy.