ABSTRACT
One of the most distressing and troublesome aspects of the operation of the criminal justice system in the United States is the severe disproportionality between blacks and whites in the composition of prison populations. Although blacks comprise roughly one-eighth of the population, they represent about one-half of the prison population. Thus, the race-specific incarceration rates (the ratio of prisoners to population within each racial group) are grossly disproportionate. This disproportionality has been a source of major concern, largely because it suggests the possibility of gross injustice in the criminal justice system.
