Indicators of Prison Life in Italy: Legislative and Structural Features

The aim of this article is to analyze and interpret the reality of prison in Italy in the last ten years. To this end particular set of data have been reconstructed and displayed: the prison population, socio-demographic features (gender, national origin, level of education, age, etc.) of the prison population, as well as their legal position (type of crime and sentence). Particular attention is given to the study of alternative measures to prison, in relation to the origin of the detainees, the length of sentence and the sentence remaining after imprisonment. The goal is to reconstruct the current situation of prisons in Italy, as background elements to situate the following articles, in the context of deeper reforms in the criminal field.