One of the main reasons prisons are overcrowded is that crime control strategies and legislative changes have resulted in longer sentences (Mcshane, 2008). A 2006 study showed the change in state and federal prison populations from 1990 to 2005. In 1990 there were a total of 773,124 inmates. In 2005, that number rose to 2,186,230 (Harrison & Beck, 2006). Three strikes laws have a big impact on the overpopulation of our prison systems because it means more life sentences with a lower chance of parole for most offenders. Three strikes laws are a form of federal mandatory minimum sentencing laws. Most mandatory minimum sentencing laws apply to drug crimes. These laws limit the judicial discretion of all judges on drug cases. Individuals convicted of particular crimes must be punished in accordance with mandatory minimum laws which state that at least the minimum sentence is required. This law weakens the criminal justice system in many ways. The law prevents judges from tailoring the punishment and/or sentence to the person and circumstances of the crime committed. Because of the law's limitation on judges' discretion, federal and state prisons are overcrowded to the detriment of taxpayers. Prior to this law, a convicted individual's overall sentence was decided by a judge after the individual pleaded guilty or was found guilty at trial. . The general sentence was decided based on the crime and the circumstances, the punishment had to be proportional to the crime committed (Champion, 2008). Judges were able to use their sentencing discretion in accordance with federal and state sentencing guidelines. However, when the Mandatory Minimum Sentences… halfway through the document… for longer periods of time, which ultimately leads to overcrowding and overpopulation of inmates in our correctional facilities. Works Cited Broderick, V. (1998). Criminal justice: opposing points of view. (p. 114). San Diego, CA: Greenhaven Press, Inc.Champion, D. (2008). Sentence: prison and prison overcrowding. (p. 39). Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO.Chemerinsky, E. (2010). Mandatory minimum sentence. (pages 82-83). Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven Press.Harrison, P. and Beck, AJUS Department of Justice, (2006). Inmates in jail and prison as of mid-year 2005 (NCJ213133). Retrieved from the Bureau of Justice Statistics website: http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/pjim05.pdfMcshane, M. (2008). American prisons. (pages 239-240). New York, NY: LFB Scholarly Publishing LLC. Walsh, J. (2007). Read about the three strikes. (page 50). Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.