KY jails and prisons are over capacity. New analysis suggests it's going to get worse

(pixabay.com)

Kentucky has some of the highest incarceration rates in the country. But state lawmakers ignored most efforts to address the issue and its root causes, instead passing measures that are likely to worsen overcrowding in jails and prisons.

While COVID-19-related efforts alleviated some jail and prison overcrowding, new analysis from the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy, a progressive think tank, shows carceral institutions are over capacity again — with 9,835 people in state prisons and 21,831 in Kentucky jails.