France’s overcrowded prison population reaches all-time high

According to the French Justice Ministry, the number of prisoners in the country’s prisons has again updated the anti-record, reaching 78,500 people with a prison capacity of 61,800, TASS reports with reference to Agence France-Presse

It is underlined that the number of convicts in penitentiary institutions has been constantly increasing over the last ten months. The average occupancy rate reached 126.9 percent, but in 19 of them this figure exceeded 200 percent. In this regard, 3,500 prisoners are forced to sleep on the floor, although a year ago there were 2,400 such people.

The situation is even worse in penitentiary institutions where French people are being held, who are awaiting a court decision or serving short sentences. There, the average occupancy rate reaches 152.3 percent.