1. Racial injustice in the criminal justice system
Wornie Reed, Ph.D.
Race and Social Policy Research Center
Virginia Tech
June 22, 2013

2. The problem Number of blacks in the CJ system today Greater than
Number of blacks in slavery in 1850

3. Black and White Prison Admissions, Historical

4. African Americans are 12.6% of the U.S. Population
30% of those arrested
41% of persons in jails
49% of persons in prison

5. Nationally, The Black Population is Being Imprisoned at Alarming Rates
Upwards of 1/3 of the black male population is under the supervision of the correctional system (prison, jail, parole, probation)
Estimated “lifetime expectancy” of spending some time in prison is 29% for young black men.
About 9% of black men in their 20s are in prison
7% of black children, 2.6% of Hispanic children , .8% of white children have a parent in prison (at one time) – lifetime expectancy much higher

6. Distressing trends
In some jurisdictions, greater than 50% of black males in their 20s are under criminal justice supervision
At the current rate of incarceration, nearly 30% of black males born in the 1990s will serve time in a state or federal prison as compared to only 4.4% of non-Hispanic whites.

7. Trends in property and violent crimes, United States, 1975-2005
Note: Violent Crime - per 1,000 persons 12+ years of age; Property Crime – per 1,000 households.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice. OJP, BJS, Crime Characteristics (at

8. The Drug War
Much of the increase in imprisonment is due to drug offenses.
Drug use rates have generally declined since the 1980s, while drug imprisonments have increased.
Black adult drug use rates are only slightly higher than the white rates, while their imprisonment rates for drugs are enormous
Among juveniles, blacks use illegal drugs less than whites, but black juveniles have much higher drug arrest rates.

9. African Americans, Drugs, and Criminal Justice, U.S.

10. Percentage of African Americans at Stages of the Criminal Justice Process, Virginia

11. Crack Cocaine Users
Sources: Porter and Wright, 2011; Mauer 2010

12. Crack Cocaine Defendants
Sources: Porter and Wright, 2011; Mauer 2010

13. Racial disparities in marijuana possession arrest rates per 100,000 population
ACLU The War on Marijuana in Black and White. NY: ACLU

14. Marijuana use rates by race, age (%)
ACLU The War on Marijuana in Black and White. NY: ACLU

15. Times More likely blacks arrested
USA x
Virginia x
Montgomery County 6.3x

16. Traffic Stops, Searches, and Yields for 12 Selected States, by Race
Race/Ethnicity
Stops
Searches
Yield
Blacks
11 of 12 > whites
9 of 12 > whites
6 of 9: B < W
Hispanics
5 of 11 > whites
9 of 10 > whites
7 of 8: H < W

17. Drug incarceration rates by race, 2007
White Adults Black Adults
Unjust (Current) , ,000
Just
Whites at black rate ,000 or
Blacks at white rate ,300

18. Consequences Psychological Increased contact with CJ system
Loss of driving privileges
DMC
Over one-third of all prisoners are on drug charges.

19. Consequences (cont’d)
Felony convictions
Affects welfare benefits, public housing, financial aid for higher ed
Negative health consequences
Tuberculosis
HIV infection
Disenfranchisement
> 2 million in U.S. (38% of total)
> 220 thousand in VA
Diminished employment prospects
Lone mothers

20. UCRC
Black Males Not Working and Black Mother Only Families, U.S.,

21. Black Males Not Working and Black Female Headed Households, Virginia

22. Effects of Black Males Not Working
UCRC
Effects of Black Males Not Working
Reduced number of eligible marriageable males.
Family structure, poverty, and the well-being of children
47% of children in lone mother families are in poverty.
Note: there are debates about the size of the effect of the “marriageable mate pool.” However, it is clear that it is a factor in African American family structure. The relationship does not hold for whites and Hispanics.