The Distribution of Carceral Harm: County-Level Jail Incarceration and Mortality by Race, Sex, and Age.

ABSTRACT: Jail incarceration remains an overlooked yet crucial component of the U.S. carceral system. Although a growing literature has examined the mortality costs associated with residing in areas with high levels of incarceration, far less is known about how local jails shape this burden at the intersection of race, sex, and age. In this study, I examine the relationship between county-level jail incarceration and age-specific mortality for non-Hispanic Black and White men and women, uniquely leveraging race-specific jail rates to account for the unequal racial distribution of jail exposures. This study finds evidence of positive associations between mortality and jail incarceration: this association peaks in late adulthood (ages 50-64), when increases in jail rates are associated with roughly 3%

SUBMITTER: Luck AN 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11781590 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature