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Please note!
This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.
Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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FACT BRIEF

Are a large number of US prisoners disabled?

By Jacob Alabab-Moser
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YES

About 30% of state and federal prisoners and 40% of local jail inmates reported having at least one disability in 2011-12, according to the most recent report on the subject from the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics. In the same years, 11% of people in the general population reported having some kind of disability. The report said 19.5% of state and federal prisoners reported a cognitive disability, the most common disability cited, compared with 4.8% of the general population.

According to the Center for American Progress, a left-leaning think tank, the disproportionate number of disabled people behind bars is in part a result of mental-health policy changes in the latter half of the 20th century. Hundreds of thousands of mentally disabled individuals were released from large institutions without adequate investment in alternative housing and support. Many ended up in the prison system.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
Bureau of Justice Statistics: Disabilities among prison and jail inmates, 2011–12
Center for American Progress: Disabled behind bars
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Gigafact
Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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About fact briefs published on Gigafact
Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.