France’s prison population has reached a new record of 90,937 inmates, the Justice Ministry announced on Monday, as overcrowding continues to worsen across the country’s correctional facilities.
Statistics released by the ministry showed that the figure was recorded on October 1, while French prisons have an overall capacity of just 63,400 places.
According to the data, the prison occupancy rate reached 143.3%, exceeding 200% in some facilities. The shortage of beds has forced around 9,000 inmates to sleep on mattresses placed directly on the floor.
Prison Population Continues to Rise
The number of inmates in France has continued to increase in recent months, surpassing the 90,000 mark for the first time last September.
In a statistical report published on October 15, the French Justice Ministry said the prison population stood at approximately 90,900 on October 1, representing a 7% increase compared with the same period last year.
The ministry said 89,400 inmates were held in correctional facilities across mainland France and other territories, excluding certain overseas regions, while approximately 1,500 were detained in New Caledonia and French Polynesia.
International Criticism of French Prison Conditions
France has faced repeated international criticism for its prison conditions over the years. The United Nations has urged French authorities to take urgent measures to address overcrowding, warning that it can lead to detention conditions that may amount to inhuman or degrading treatment.
Previous Council of Europe reports have also identified France and Turkey among the member states with the most overcrowded prison systems.
France remains one of the European Union countries facing serious detention-related challenges. The European Court of Human Rights has issued several rulings against the country over conditions in its prisons.
In July 2023, the court ruled that overcrowding and the failure to take effective measures to improve detention conditions in France had resulted in violations of the European Convention on Human Rights.
