Background

Minnesota has an extremely low incarceration rate (people in jail and prison) when compared to the rest of the country. But, when we add community supervision (probation, parole, and supervised release) to this number, Minnesota jumps to the 13th highest in the nation for the rate of people under correctional control. This is demonstrated in the below graph from the Prison Policy Initiative.

Source: Prison Policy Initiative

In 2023, Minnesota had 106,500 people under correctional control, and 83 percent of them were under community supervision. The state's parole, supervised release, and probation rates all peaked in 2020 and have been declining since.

While the state has made progress, its high national ranking indicates that, still, too many people are on probation for too long, and too many people are cycling in and out of incarceration for violations.

But things are looking up as the annual number of cases starts to go down. In 2024, Minnesota saw the lowest number of probation cases in two decades.

Sources:

Prison Policy Initiative

2002 Probation Survey: MN Department of Corrections

2010 Probation Survey: MN Department of Corrections

2014 Probation Survey: MN Department of Corrections

2020 Probation Survey: MN Department of Corrections

2023 Probation Survey: MN Department of Corrections

2024 Probation Survey: MN Department of Corrections

Adult Prison Population Summary: MN Department of Corrections

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