A procedure for the strategic planning of locations, capacities and districting of jails: application to Chile

Using the Chilean jail system as a case study, we present a model for finding the location of a number of new jails, as well as the size and districting of new and existing jails, so that the cost of the system is minimized. We propose a minimum regret procedure for choosing a good solution, given that several future scenarios are possible. The jail capacities range from a few tens to 2000 inmates. The population is composed of pre-trial detainees, people under trial and sentenced offenders. Each one of these categories has different requirements, in terms of the site of their confinement. Inmates stay in the system for periods that go from a few days to life sentences. Some overcrowding is allowed, but penalized by the model. Several scenarios of future population are used for finding a solution for the Chilean system, where there are some 33,000 inmates.