PAROLE, PROBATION RATES TOP 4 MILLION

Washington - Probation and parole rates in the Florida justice system show
declines from 1997 figures

The number of Americans on probation or parole has surpassed 4 million for
the first time, the Bureau of Justice Statistics said Sunday.

But the overall increase masked some sharp changes among the states.

There were large declines in the number of adults on parole in several
states, including Virginia - down 37 percent - and North Carolina - down 30
percent.

Parole is a period of supervision following an inmate's release from prison.

In Florida, the number on probation in 1998 was 239,021, a 0.3 percent drop
from 1997. The number on parole was 7,421, down 12.5 percent from 1997.

The number of parolees in Ohio increased 66 percent. in Idaho, the figure
jumped 55 percent according to the report.

A change in Ohio law contributed to its increase, said Thomas Bonczar, a
bureau statistician. "A lot of states are passing mandatory parole," he said.

At the same time, the increase in parolees was balanced by states that have
toughened laws to keep offenders in prison longer.

The national prison release rate declined from 37 per 100 prisoners in 1990
to 31 in 1997 while average time served increased from 22 months in 1990 to
27 months in 1997, Bonczar said.

Overall, 704,964 people were on parole at the end of 1998, up from 694,787
in 1997.

Turning to probation, more than 3.4 million adults were serving a period of
correctional supervision in their communities at the end of 1998, up from
nearly 3.3 million people in 1997.

Idaho and Vermont each reported a 21 percent increase in their respective
probation populations, the largest among the states.

Eleven states reported declines.

While violent crime has declined in recent years, there have been increases
in drug abuse violations and convictions for fraud and forgery, which tend
to be the types of crimes for which people are sentenced to probation.

Some 96 percent of parolees had been convicted of a felony. More than half
- - 57 percent - of those on probation had committed a felony; 40 percent
were convicted of misdemeanors and the rest found guilty of other infractions.