Wyoming Prison Population Rose in 2017

According to a government report, Wyoming's prison population grew between 2016 and 2017 by 4.2 percent. Only two other mountain west states kept up with the same rate of increase, Utah and Idaho, with 4.3 and 5.1 percent respectively.

It's helpful to remember that Wyoming's small population leads to an increased margin of error for reports and surveys such as this. Wyoming currently has 429 per 100,000 people in prison, 20 more per 100,000 than the year before. While it might not seem like a huge increase, 29 other states saw their prison populations decrease instead of increase, with Maine remaining steady at the same population.

Currently, Wyoming State Penitentiary in Rawlins houses a maximum of 670 male inmates, while the Medium Correctional Institute in Torrington holds 720. Another 280 male inmates are housed at the Wyoming Honor Farm in Riverton, and the Wyoming Women's Center in Lust houses 260 women.