Pretrial Detention and the Adverse Impacts for At-Risk Inmates

• In Event: Pre-Trial and Short Term Detention

Abstract

Scholarship suggests that experiences in jails are straining and they may be especially challenging for at-risk inmate groups. Local jails typically have limited resources and can provide fewer services than typical state-run prisons. Strain and prison literatures suggest that the initial period of incarceration, which is often experienced in pretrial detention, is the most difficult part of confinement. This paper examines the length of time inmates spend in pretrial confinement and the potential impacts of longer amounts of time spent in jail generically and for especially at-risk inmate groups. These results help to shed light on the impact of pretrial detention and have implications for theory and research focused on understanding diverse incarceration experiences and their broader effects.

Authors

• Elisa Toman, University of South Florida

• Joshua Cochran, University of Cincinnati

• John Cochran, University of South Florida