FRANCE RECORD-HOLDER FOR THE NUMBER OF INMATES

PARIS, MAY 30 /SRNA/ – The number of people in French prisons reached 88,654 on May 1, representing the highest recorded number of inmates, according to official data from the French Ministry of Justice.

The overcrowding in French prisons is further highlighted by the fact that due to a lack of beds, 7,693 mattresses are being used on cell floors.

Within a single year, the number of prisoners increased by nearly 5,000, while the number of available spaces grew by only about 750, media outlets report.

The filled capacities are particularly alarming in remand centers, which house offenders serving short sentences or awaiting trial—who are thus presumed innocent. In these facilities, the total overcrowding rate reached 140% by May 1.

In 33 correctional facilities, there are at least two inmates per cell. The most severe situation is in the Paris region, with an occupancy rate of 163.7%, as well as in the Toulouse region, at 155.5%.

France ranks among the countries most affected by prison overcrowding, behind Slovenia and Cyprus, while the Council of Europe has previously warned of the risk of prisons becoming "human warehouses."

Minister of Justice Gérald Darmanin opposes the introduction of a quota system in the prison network based on the German model, which mandates that the intake and release of inmates be regulated once a certain capacity threshold is reached.