Death in Prison: Explaining Racial Disparities in Risks for Mortality, Age at Death, and Potential Years of Life Lost

• In Event: Understanding the Drivers and Responses to Prison Violence: Results from a Multi-State Examination

Abstract

Time in prison is known to be associated with early mortality. However, there is mixed evidence regarding how prison mortality risks vary by race, or how heterogeneous in-prison experiences (e.g., time in restrictive housing, involvement in prison violence) further shape these risks. Drawing from over 10 years of administrative data from two state prison systems, this study examines racial and ethnic differences in overall mortality, as well as age at death and potential years of life lost, among people who died in prison. In addition to individual demographic factors, we focus on various elements of the prison experience to uncover both risk and protective factors associated with the mortality outcomes (overall mortality, age at death, and potential years of life lost). The results and their implications for policy and future research will be discussed.

Authors

• Jillian Turanovic, University of Colorado Boulder

• Nancy Rodriguez, University of California, Irvine

• Julie L. Kuper, University of Wyoming