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50 State Reports

Supervision Violation Data Snapshot

States across the country saw changes in their prison admissions and populations due to supervision violations in 2020. But some states were already experiencing reductions in violation admissions and population prior to the pandemic. This snapshot shows available supervision violation data for Virginia from 2018 through 2020.

Admissions

Virginia did not provide data for prison admissions due to supervision violations.

The breakdown

Total Admissions Violation Admissions Technical Violation Admissions
201812077
201911864
Total 2018 2019 2020
Total admissions 12,077 11,864
Total Violation admissions 6,209
Probation admissions 6,159
Parole admissions 50 30
Total Technical Violation admissions 1,592 13
Probation admissions 1,579
Parole admissions 13 13
Total New Offense admissions 4,617 17
Probation admissions 4,580
Parole admissions 37 17
Population

From 2018 to 2019, Virginia saw a 9 percent increase in the number of people in prison due to supervision violations.

The breakdown

Total Population Violation Population Technical Violation Population
201837304145262310
201936930158562017
Total 2018 2019 2020
Total population 37,304 36,930 33,788
Total Violation population 14,526 15,856
Probation population 13,410 15,151
Parole population 1,116 705
Total Technical Violation population 2,310 2,017
Probation population 2,218 1,891
Parole population 92 126
Total New Offense population 12,216 13,839
Probation population 11,192 13,260
Parole population 1,024 579

Additional State Notes

Admissions data changes as additional sentencing and offense information is received, verified, and entered into Virginia Department of Corrections' (VADOC) "offender management system." FY2019 data is preliminary and will change as additional sentencing and offense information is received, verified, and entered into VADOC's system. Admissions data for FY2020 is not yet available.

Population numbers include individuals under VADOC custody being housed in local jails and VADOC facilities. The total population figure for FY2020 is preliminary and will change as additional sentencing and offense information is received, verified, and entered into VADOC's system. This will include information on people who have violated probation and parole.


Whether an incarceration is the result of a new offense or technical violation is often difficult and problematic to delineate, even in states with available data. Most states do not consider a supervision violation to be the result of a new offense unless a new felony conviction is present, meaning technical violations may include misdemeanor convictions or new arrests. "Prison" includes county jail if the county was reimbursed by the state for a person’s incarceration, which occurs in some, but not all, states. Supervision violations may include revocations (i.e., unsuccessful terminations of a supervision and completion of a sentence in prison or jail) or short-term sanctions (i.e., probation or parole jurisdiction is maintained and the person is incarcerated for a short period of time in prison or jail). Not all states impose or include short-term sanctions in their count of supervision violations.