PHILADELPHIA - Philadelphia plans to continue its efforts to reduce the city's jail population and to reduce racial inequities in its criminal justice system with the help of a $2.275 million MacArthur Foundation grant.City officials announced the funding boost Tuesday, its fourth award from the foundation's Safety and Justice Challenge Network since 2015.
The new grant brings the city's total funding to about $9.9 million.The city has used some of the previous funding to lower the jail population — currently at about 4,600 people — by about 43% since 2015 including closing its antiquated House of Corrections facility.