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US Prison Population Peaks DALLAS, TX (Associated Press) -

The United States may soon see its prison population drop for the first time in almost four decades.

A new report from the Bureau of Justice Statistics says only 3,500 more inmates were added than released last year. That's less than 1 percent growth and the smallest annual increase this decade.

The inmate population has risen steadily since the early 1970s as states adopted get-tough policies that sent more people to prison and kept them there longer.

But experts say tight budgets have forced states to rethink these policies and the costs that come with them.

In Texas, as few as 15 percent of inmates were once granted parole. That has grown to more than 30 percent since Texas began identifying low-risk candidates for release.
© Copyright 2012, Associated Press