According to a report published by the Prison Policy Initiative in 2021, approximately 2.3 million people are held in American jails and prisons, and about 75% of them are being held pretrial. Of these pretrial detainees, an estimated 39% are considered legally innocent, meaning they have not been convicted of a crime and are awaiting trial or plea bargaining. This percentage varies across different states and jurisdictions, with some reporting even higher rates of pretrial detention of legally innocent individuals. It is important to note that pretrial detention disproportionately affects marginalized communities, including people of color and low-income individuals.