By The Sentancing Project
Recently there has been a significant shift in the racial composition of people incarcerated for drug offenses. Our analysis below documents these striking trends:
• The number of African Americans in state prisons for a drug offense declined by 21.6% from 1999-2005, a reduction of more than 31,000 persons.
• The number of whites incarcerated for a drug offense rose significantly during this period, an increase of 42.6%, representing an additional 21,000 persons in prison.
This report examines these shifting dynamics in the context of the criminal justice system to explore possible explanations for these changes. We then assess the implications of these changes for both substance abuse policy and considerations of racial justice.
Read the full report here (PDF): http://sentencingproject.org/Admin/Documents/publications/dp_raceanddrugs.pdf