The mortality rate among people incarcerated in New York state prisons nearly doubled between 2010 and 2025, according to newly updated data from the Correctional Association of New York.
The organization's dashboard shows the rate rose from 2.06 deaths per 1,000 incarcerated people in 2010 to 3.95 in 2025. Deaths in custody through July 2026 were trending 38% above the previous five-year average, the association said.
The Correctional Association updated several public dashboards tracking the prison population, deaths, self-harm, mental health caseloads and staffing within the state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.
The latest update includes prison population and death data through July, staffing figures through April, self-harm incidents and suicide attempts through February, and mental health caseload and program census data through May. Suicide death figures run through the end of 2025.
Deaths by suicide declined from 25 in 2024 to 17 in 2025, a 32% decrease, according to the dashboards. Nine of the 17 deaths occurred in general population housing, while five occurred in disciplinary housing units.
The association also reported population increases at facilities near prisons affected by closures or consolidation. Between July 2025 and July 2026, the population at Franklin Correctional Facility rose 59%, while Lakeview Correctional Facility recorded a 55% increase following the closure of Bare Hill Correctional Facility and consolidation of Collins Correctional Facility.
The statewide staffing vacancy rate declined slightly from 26% to 25%. Franklin's vacancy rate fell from 26% to 9%, which the association said suggested employees may have been reassigned after the Bare Hill closure.
The mental health dashboards added eight months of Office of Mental Health caseload and program census information, covering September 2025 through May 2026.
The Correctional Association is an independent nonprofit with a state legislative mandate to monitor conditions in New York prisons. It conducts facility visits, publishes reports and provides civilian oversight of the prison system.
FingerLakes1.com is the region’s leading all-digital news publication. The company was founded in 1998 and has been keeping residents informed for more than two decades. Have a lead? Send it to news@fingerlakes1.com.