Imprisonment rate (sentenced prisoners) in West Virginia

Imprisonment rate (sentenced prisoners) in West Virginia was 328 per 100,000 people in 2023, according to Bureau of Justice Statistics. That is down 3 pts from 2022. That is the 20th highest of 50 states in 2023.

2023, per 100,000 people328

Change on 2022-3 pts

Rank20th of 50US states ranked

Series high3932016

Series low641980

Next release: Saturday, 20 February 2027, estimated by Invokely from past publication dates (low confidence), not announced by the publisher. Release calendar

Imprisonment rate (sentenced prisoners) in West Virginia, 1978 to 2023

per 100,000 people. Source: BJS, National Prisoner Statistics: imprisonment rate of sentenced prisoners per 100,000 U.S. residents, total (CSAT quick table and Prisoners in YYYY statistical tables). Retrieved 2026-10-12, published 2026-02-20.

All 46 values

Period	per 100,000 people
2023	328
2022	331
2021	328
2020	338
2019	380
2018	377
2017	391
2016	393
2015	388
2014	373
2013	368
2012	378
2011	367
2010	358
2009	347
2008	332
2007	334
2006	316
2005	293
2004	279
2003	262
2002	250
2001	232
2000	210
1999	195
1998	192
1997	173
1996	149
1995	136
1994	128
1993	99
1992	93
1991	84
1990	87
1989	85
1988	80
1987	78
1986	78
1985	90
1984	82
1983	83
1982	79
1981	80
1980	64
1979	65
1978	64

Compared with United States

Place	2023
West Virginia	328
United States	360

Rankings

US states by imprisonment rate (sentenced prisoners) 51 places

Definition

Sentenced prisoners (sentence of more than 1 year) under the jurisdiction of state or federal correctional authorities on December 31, per 100,000 residents of all ages. Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics, with Census Bureau resident population estimates for January 1 of the following year.

Counts only prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year, so it differs from the prison population rate used for other countries (prison_population_rate), which counts everyone held in prison, pre-trial detainees included. Prisoners are counted by the jurisdiction with legal authority over them, wherever they are held, on December 31. The national figure adds the federal system to the states. Local jails are not included, except in Alaska, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Rhode Island and Vermont, which run one combined prison and jail system. Felons sentenced in the District of Columbia have been the responsibility of the Federal Bureau of Prisons since 2001, so the District has values only up to 2000.

How to cite

Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics. National Prisoner Statistics: imprisonment rate of sentenced prisoners per 100,000 U.S. residents, total (CSAT quick table and Prisoners in YYYY statistical tables). https://bjs.ojp.gov/library/publications/prisoners-2023-statistical-tables. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

Bureau of Justice Statistics. (2026). National Prisoner Statistics: imprisonment rate of sentenced prisoners per 100,000 U.S. residents, total (CSAT quick table and Prisoners in YYYY statistical tables) (Imprisonment rate (sentenced prisoners), West Virginia, 1978 to 2023) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://bjs.ojp.gov/library/publications/prisoners-2023-statistical-tables

MLA 9

National Prisoner Statistics: imprisonment rate of sentenced prisoners per 100,000 U.S. residents, total (CSAT quick table and Prisoners in YYYY statistical tables), Imprisonment rate (sentenced prisoners), West Virginia, 1978 to 2023. Bureau of Justice Statistics, 20 Feb. 2026, https://bjs.ojp.gov/library/publications/prisoners-2023-statistical-tables. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/en/imprisonment-rate/west-virginia. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

Bureau of Justice Statistics. 2026. National Prisoner Statistics: imprisonment rate of sentenced prisoners per 100,000 U.S. residents, total (CSAT quick table and Prisoners in YYYY statistical tables). Imprisonment rate (sentenced prisoners), West Virginia, 1978 to 2023. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://bjs.ojp.gov/library/publications/prisoners-2023-statistical-tables. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/en/imprisonment-rate/west-virginia.

Harvard

Bureau of Justice Statistics (2026) National Prisoner Statistics: imprisonment rate of sentenced prisoners per 100,000 U.S. residents, total (CSAT quick table and Prisoners in YYYY statistical tables), Imprisonment rate (sentenced prisoners), West Virginia, 1978 to 2023 [Dataset]. Available at: https://bjs.ojp.gov/library/publications/prisoners-2023-statistical-tables, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/en/imprisonment-rate/west-virginia (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX

@misc{bureau_imprisonment_rate_sentenced_prisoners_2023,
  author = {{Bureau of Justice Statistics}},
  title = {{National Prisoner Statistics: imprisonment rate of sentenced prisoners per 100,000 U.S. residents, total (CSAT quick table and Prisoners in YYYY statistical tables): Imprisonment rate (sentenced prisoners), West Virginia, 1978 to 2023}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://bjs.ojp.gov/library/publications/prisoners-2023-statistical-tables},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/en/imprisonment-rate/west-virginia. Publisher attribution: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics. National Prisoner Statistics: imprisonment rate of sentenced prisoners per 100,000 U.S. residents, total (CSAT quick table and Prisoners in YYYY statistical tables). https://bjs.ojp.gov/library/publications/prisoners-2023-statistical-tables. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}

RIS

TY  - DATA
AU  - Bureau of Justice Statistics
TI  - National Prisoner Statistics: imprisonment rate of sentenced prisoners per 100,000 U.S. residents, total (CSAT quick table and Prisoners in YYYY statistical tables): Imprisonment rate (sentenced prisoners), West Virginia, 1978 to 2023
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/02/20
PB  - Bureau of Justice Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://bjs.ojp.gov/library/publications/prisoners-2023-statistical-tables
L2  - https://invokely.ai/en/imprisonment-rate/west-virginia
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/en/imprisonment-rate/west-virginia.
N1  - Publisher attribution: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics. National Prisoner Statistics: imprisonment rate of sentenced prisoners per 100,000 U.S. residents, total (CSAT quick table and Prisoners in YYYY statistical tables). https://bjs.ojp.gov/library/publications/prisoners-2023-statistical-tables. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -

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Questions

What is the imprisonment rate (sentenced prisoners) in West Virginia?

Where does this figure come from?

Bureau of Justice Statistics. National Prisoner Statistics: imprisonment rate of sentenced prisoners per 100,000 U.S. residents, total (CSAT quick table and Prisoners in YYYY statistical tables). Retrieved by Invokely on 2026-10-12.

What was the highest imprisonment rate (sentenced prisoners) in West Virginia?

393 per 100,000 people in 2016, the highest value since 1978 in this series.

Imprisonment rate (sentenced prisoners) elsewhere in United States

Related statistics for West Virginia

All statistics for West Virginia | West Virginia in figures