NCJ Number
160934
Date Published
August 1996
Length
12 pages
Agencies
BJS
Publication Series
Annotation
Between 1984 and 1994, the number of noncitizens serving a sentence of imprisonment in Federal prisons increased by an average of 15 percent annually, from 4,088 to 18,929; in contrast, the overall Federal prison population increased by an average of 10 percent annually, from 31,105 to 87,437.
Abstract
Of noncitizens prosecuted in Federal courts during 1994, 55 percent were in the United States legally. During 1984, about 35 percent of noncitizens prosecuted in Federal courts were charged with a drug offense. By 1994, the proportion charged with a drug offense increased to 45 percent. Nearly all prosecutions for immigration offenses (93 percent) involved noncitizens, and 1.4 percent of noncitizens prosecuted in Federal courts were charged with a violent crime, compared to 8.5 percent of citizens. Noncitizens convicted of a Federal drug offense were more likely than citizens to have played a minor role in the drug conspiracy. About 29 percent of noncitizens convicted of a drug offense received a downward sentencing adjustment for mitigating role, compared to 14 percent of citizens. 14 tables and 3 figures
Date Created: December 21, 2009