World Prisons

Reform / Organisations

Vera Institute of Justice

national · founded 1961 · HQ United States

Verified 21 May 2026 · Data dated 21 May 2026
Fresh · 8d ago

US non-profit that drives change in justice systems through research, technical assistance, and demonstration projects.

Founded in 1961, the Vera Institute runs evidence-based pilots, embeds in jails and prisons to drive change, and publishes data on incarceration rates, jail populations, and prison conditions. Its Incarceration Trends tool covers every US county.

Focus areas

decarcerationdata transparencyconditionsimmigration detention

Reports published by Vera

  • An interactive county-level dataset of US jail and prison incarceration from 1970 to present. Reveals that the post-2000 growth in incarceration has shifted from large urban centres to small and rural counties, and that pre-trial jail populations remain the fastest-growing segment.