How Court Mitigation of Jail Overcrowding Affects Homicides

Richard T. Boylan

Journal of Law and Economics, 2025, vol. 68, issue 3, 561 - 584

Abstract: I analyze court orders issued between 1970 and 1988 that were intended to address jail overcrowding. I find that these court orders led to a 21 percent reduction in jail populations but resulted in a 15 percent increase in homicide rates outside of jails. Recent scholarly work suggests that jail incarceration rates could have been reduced without significantly impacting crime. Thus, my findings suggest that court orders may be an ineffective method for reforming jails.

Date: 2025
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