Spike in number of female prisoners at Alaska prisons

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) – The increase in the

number of women prisoners in Alaska more than tripled that of male inmate growth

between 2004 and 2013, according to a study by University of Alaska Anchorage researchers.

The statistics released Monday show that the female inmate population grew by about 87 percent over the

10-year period, while the number of male inmates grew by about 24 percent. The study also found that close to a

quarter of all admissions to Alaska Department of Corrections facilities were women, reported The Alaska Dispatch News.

Overall, the state’s incarceration rate remained relatively stable during the 10-year

period, averaging nine inmates for every 1,000 Alaska

adults.

But women have continued to outpace men in admissions growth.

“On average, the female admission rate per 1,000 Alaska females increased by 18.9

percent, while the male

admission rate per 1,000 Alaska males decreased 15.9 percent over the period,” according to the data.

The state has responded to the influx of woman prisoners by adding beds to the Anchorage Correctional Complex, said DOC

spokesperson Sherrie Daigle. At Hiland Mountain Correctional Complex,

the state's only facility dedicated to women-only housing, a second unit with 20 beds has been added to the mental health unit.

Data shows that between 2004 and 2013, about 69

percent of female

offenders served six months or less.

John Skidmore, director

of the Alaska Department of Law's Criminal Division,

said the reason that women move in and out of jail quicker than men is either because women are committing more misdemeanor crimes or they are ordered to serve less time than men.

“I don’t know which is the answer, and they're two very different ideas,” Skidmore said.

Lawmakers recently announced that a nonprofit would help review Alaska’s criminal justice system and

propose reforms in order to decrease the total prison

population, which has grown

by more than 50 percent in 10 years.