A record seven million people were behind bars, on probation or on parole by the end of last year, according to the US Justice Department.
Of this figure, representing one in every 32 American adults, 2.2 million were imprisoned, an increase of 2.7 per cent over the previous year, according to a report released Wednesday.
More than 4.1 million people were on probation and 784,208 were on parole at the end of 2005. Prison releases are increasing, but admissions are increasing more.
Men still far outnumber women in prisons and jails, but the female population is growing faster.
Over the past year, the female population in state or federal prison increased 2.6 per cent while the number of male inmates rose 1.9 per cent. By year's end, 7 per cent of all inmates were women.
From 1995 to 2003, inmates in federal prison for drug offences have accounted for 49 per cent of total prison population growth.
The numbers are from the annual report from the Justice Department's Bureau of Justice Statistics.
AP