This interactive map was created by the Institute to End Mass Incarceration (IEMI) as an educational resource to help advocates, organizers, and community members understand the geography of incarceration and connect facilities to their elected representatives.
Every state, federal, and local carceral facility in the United States, plotted by location. For each facility, the map identifies the state legislative districts (State Senate and State Assembly) and federal congressional district in which it sits, along with contact information for the elected officials who represent those districts.
- Facility locations — UCLA Carceral Ecologies Lab dataset (Shapiro et al.), a comprehensive national database of federal, state, local, and immigration detention facilities built from HIFLD snapshots (2017 & 2020) and enriched with EPA Facility Registry System IDs. Coordinates are address-geocoded for precise facility placement. UCLA Dataverse, doi:10.25346/S6/CQP9FE
- Immigration detention classification — Dedicated ICE detention centers and ICE contract facilities are identified through cross-referencing the UCLA dataset with the ICE Detention Facilities list (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement). This cross-reference identifies (1) facilities operated primarily for immigration detention and (2) federal Bureau of Prisons facilities and county/local jails that hold ICE detainees under contract arrangements.
- Legislative district boundaries — U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line shapefiles (state legislative districts, upper and lower chambers; congressional districts). census.gov
- Legislator contact information — Cicero by Aristotle, a commercial civic data provider. Legislator names, party affiliations, and phone numbers are retrieved via a server-side proxy and cached to reduce API costs. Data reflects current officeholders and is refreshed automatically.
Facility locations are derived from address geocoding performed by the UCLA Carceral Ecologies Lab and may not reflect facilities opened, closed, or renamed after the dataset's 2020 snapshot. The dataset covers approximately 6,030 active facilities, including federal and state prisons, county jails, local lockups, and immigration detention centers.
Immigration detention classifications are based on manual cross-referencing of the UCLA dataset with the ICE Detention Facilities list. "Dedicated ICE Detention Centers" are facilities identified on ICE.gov as primarily serving immigration detention functions. "ICE Contract Facilities" are county, local, and state jails — and select federal Bureau of Prisons facilities — that hold ICE detainees under intergovernmental service agreements or contract arrangements. A small number of facilities appear on the ICE list but are primarily BOP correctional institutions; these are coded as federal facilities with an ICE-contract overlay to reflect their dual function. Classifications reflect ICE.gov as of early 2025 and may not capture subsequent changes.
Legislator information is retrieved via the Cicero API and reflects current officeholders. Cached entries are verified weekly against Congress.gov for federal members and purged annually after each new Congress is seated. District boundaries reflect the 119th Congress (2025–2026) redistricting cycle. This map is intended as an advocacy and organizing tool, not a legal or governmental resource. If you notice an error or missing facility, please let us know.
This map was authored by Andrew Manuel Crespo and Cecily Burge.
This map was designed and developed with assistance from Claude, an AI assistant made by Anthropic. AI tools were used to help build the interactive mapping interface, process data, and generate code. All content, framing, and editorial decisions were made by IEMI staff.
Questions, corrections, or partnership inquiries? Contact us at [email protected]