Criminal Justice Issues
Today 19% of the prison population is identified as needing mental health treatment – about 6,000 people. And there are many people in our prisons and jails with disabilities who are not treated or accommodated. There are only 250 people are identified with an IDD (out of 35,000) and there is no screening for a Traumatic Brain Injury. Last year prison leaders reported that 70% of people in NC prisons have a substance use disorder or a dual treatment need for substance use and mental health. Every juvenile in the Youth Development Centers was needing treatment for a disability.
Current campaigns
Reports
- A Slap on the Wrist and a Rubber Stamp: NC Lets Sheriffs Break All the Rules
- DRNC’s 2020 Deaths in Jails Report
- State Jail Program Tied to Overcrowding
- Suicide Rates at Record High in 2019 (June 2020)
- UPDATE to 2013-16 report: Suicides in NC Jails October 2019
- Study: Restrictive Housing During Incarceration Associated With Mortality After Release
- Suicides in NC Jails August 2017
Records
DHSR inspection records from 2017-2019
This table outlines DHSR inspection records from 2017-2019, and facility deaths organized by county from 2017-2020. This table will be updated as DRNC receives and reviews inspection reports and reports of deaths. For definitions of terms used in the chart, please consult our recent report(link) on DHSR inspections statewide. If you would like access to the reports themselves or any other public record information relating to jail deaths or inspections, please contact Luke Woollard at luke.woollard@disabilityrightsnc.org with the subject line “Jail Public Record Request”, or call 919-856-2195 ext. 211.
2021 Jail Populations and Capacity
2022 Jail Population and Capacity Jan-Aug
This data set shows monthly average jail populations as reported by the jail administrators. DRNC has compared these averages to the known design capacities to show these average monthly populations as a percentage of design capacity for each facility. Any facility operating at above 100% design capacity is in violation of the Jail Rules. Per advocates and corrections experts, jails get increasingly dangerous for both staff and those in custody as jail populations exceed 80% of total design capacity.