jail

A jail is an institution used to confine people awaiting trial and those sentenced for low level crimes, like misdemeanors . Jails are between a police station lockup and a prison in terms of incarceration . Jails exist at the federal , state , and local levels (city and county jails). By contrast, prisons are used to hold felons (those convicted of a felony ) sentenced to more than one year of imprisonment.

[Last reviewed in April of 2022 by the Wex Definitions Team ]

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