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You are here:   Home → Social Environment → Incarceration Rates
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Indicator: Incarceration Rates

Data and Data Discussion provided by Sustainable Seattle

Upstream Indicators
  •   Freedom from Discrimination --- Indicator information based on three surveys conducted in 1999, 2001 and 2004. There were no significant changes over the three survey years for the county.  (view data graph)
  •   Income Distribution --- In the two decades between 1979 and 1999, there was a shift of income away from the four lower income groups to the highest income group. In King County in 2004, the richest 20% of the population received more than ten times the income of the poorest 20%.  (view data graph)
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Downstream Indicators

There are currently no published Downstream Indicators.

Related Goals

Sustainability Snapshot:

The impact of race and income inequality on incarceration levels is explained in different ways. Some hold that discrimination and income inequality indirectly affect imprisonment through crime. This is grounded on the assumption that racial discrimination and/or lower socio-economic status (both of which reduce legitimate economic opportunities) leads to criminal activity which, in turn, leads to imprisonment. There is also evidence that race and income inequality have a significant effect on imprisonment when controlling for crime. This effect is explained by the response of the economically and politically powerful to the real or perceived threat posed by culturally dissimilar groups.

Sustainability Trend:

Incarceration rates in King County jails have remained in the range of 130 to 150 per 100,000 in population over the past decade.

Data Discussion

The Indicator Defined

Number of prisoners per 100,000 of total population.

Data Interpretation/Evaluation

The incarceration rate for the King County jail is substantially lower than the national average for all jails across the country. The most recent national data is from 2005, which showed a rate of 252 incarcerated persons for every 100,000 persons in the population at large. In contrast, King County’s incarceration rate was only 139 per 100,000.

Data Source and Limitations

This indicator was researched by Sustainable Seattle.  The primary data source is the King County Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention as reported by King County AIMS High, Annual Indicators and Measures. 

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