has been generally characteristic of the elderly in past years (Carroll, 1989). This increased willingness by elderly persons to commit crimes, together with an increased proportion of elderly persons in the general population, has the effect of increasing the proportion of elderly persons in the prison population by a factor which is greater than the population proportion represented by the elderly segment of American society. Some experts project that the number of elderly persons in prison in the United States will double every four years (Carroll, 1989). Although the general prison population will also grow, its rate of growth is projected at only about 8.5 percent per year. Thus, in 2000, based on these projections, a total of 1,606,000 will likely be incarcerated in the United States, of which approximately 160,000, or almost 10.0 percent, may be expected to be age 55 or older.
The aging of prison populations is a significant issue for both corrections officials and politicians, because it costs about three times as much to house (in prison) an inmate age 55 and older as it does to house an inmate age 54 or younger (Carroll, 1989). The reasons for the increased costs of housing older prisoners is associated with the increased needs of older persons for medical care of all types, for critical care for such diseases and conditions as heart problems, cancer, stroke, and emphysema, which are more prevalent among older persons than among younger persons, and special maintenance needs, such as diets, eye glasses, and so forth (Chaneles, 1976).
The stereotype of the imprisoned person as poor, of minority origin, and young (Prison Research Education Action Project, 1985) remains generally true in the spring of 1991. The increase in the proportion of elderly prisoners, however, is rapidly changing the profile of the typical prisoner, and the stereotype will likely be completely out of date by 2000.
WHY THE PROPORTION O...