73,080 people were detained in French prisons on April 1. This is the third consecutive month that the number of prisoners has risen.
The previous peak, in December 2022, was 72,836 inmates. 55 prisons have a density of more than 150% where nearly three out of ten inmates stay there. The government wants to build 15,000 additional prison places by the end of the five-year term. The implementation of this plan is progressing, it "is significantly delayed", stressed the Court of Auditors.