History of Prisoner in Timeline

By Popular Timelines Editorial Team · Updated: March 17, 2026

A prisoner, also referred to as an inmate or detainee, is an individual whose freedom has been forcibly taken away, either through confinement in a correctional facility or by physical restraint. The term typically refers to someone who is currently serving a sentence within a prison setting.

1940: Publication of The Prison Community

In 1940, Donald Clemmer's "The Prison Community" was first published, marking the founding of ethnographic prison sociology.

The Prison Community (Palgrave Studies in Prisons and Penology)

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1958: Republishing of The Prison Community and publication of The Society of Captives

In 1958, Donald Clemmer's "The Prison Community" was republished, and Gresham Sykes' "The Society of Captives" was also published, further establishing ethnographic prison sociology as a discipline.

The Prison Community (Palgrave Studies in Prisons and Penology)

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1967: Criminal Law Act

In 1967, the Criminal Law Act of 1967 abolished the distinction between felony and misdemeanor, rendering the term "Prisoner" obsolete in its previous legal context.

1992: Prison Security Act

In 1992, according to section 1 of the Prison Security Act 1992, a "prisoner" is defined as any individual held in legal custody within a prison, as mandated by a court or other legal requirement.

1997: Prison education reduces re-incarceration

In 1997, a study focusing on 3,200 prisoners in Maryland, Minnesota, and Ohio, showed that prison education reduced the likelihood of re-incarceration by 29 percent.

2000: Texas Department of Education longitudinal study

In 2000, the Texas Department of Education conducted a longitudinal study of 883 men and women who earned college degrees while incarcerated, finding recidivism rates between 27.2 percent (completion of an AA degree) and 7.8 percent (completion of a BA degree), compared to a system-wide recidivism rate between 40 and 43 percent.

2013: Department of Justice funded study from the RAND Corporation

In 2013, a Department of Justice funded study from the RAND Corporation found that incarcerated individuals who participated in correctional education were 43% less likely to return to prison within 3 years than prisoners who did not participate in such programmes.