This study compares inmates convicted and incarcerated as persistent felony offenders (PFO's) to the general inmate population in Kentucky. Data on all incarcerated persistent felony offenders (N = 1,261 as of May 1, 1985) and on a ten percent random sample of other incarcerated felons (N = 356) were collected. The comparison group was subdivided into two parts: 1) first offenders (incarcerated for their first conviction, N = 125) and 2) repeat offenders (incarcerated with at least one prior conviction but not sentenced as PFO's, N = 231). The primary distinction between the PFO and repeat offender groups is the length of sentence. Although the criminal histories of the PFO's revealed that they had been involved in violent crime, it appears that the PFO statute was not consistently applied to all repeat offenders.
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