Fewer and fewer Berliners are going to prison, but the costs of prison continue to rise. These are the latest figures from the Justice Senate Administration, which are available exclusively to the taz.
The parliamentary question from SPD MPs Sebastian Schlüsselburg and Jan Lehmann shows that the number of convictions in particular has decreased significantly in the last two years. While the Berlin courts imposed 1,501 prison sentences without parole in 2023, there were only 909 in 2025.
There has been a decline of around 30 percent in fines and convictions with probation over the past two years. Accordingly, the number of initial admissions fell. While there were 6,019 inmates in 2024, there were only 5,144 in 2025.
However, the falling convictions do not mean any financial relief. The prison budget has increased continuously over the past two years. In 2025 it was over 300 million euros. The average occupancy also only fell slightly: from 3,644 inmates in 2024 to 3,597 inmates in 2025. 95 percent of prisoners are still male.
Inefficient system
The apparent contradiction is due to an inefficient justice system, criticizes Schlüsselburg: “If convictions fall significantly, but the costs of enforcement rise, then it is not a lack of severity, but rather a lack of control. A liberal constitutional state must achieve more effect with less punishment.”
Schluesselburg and Lehmann suggest using alternatives to prison more consistently. The biggest lever for this is probably the so-called Compensatory prison sentences be. For example, people who have been caught several times without public transport tickets and cannot pay their fines are imprisoned for weeks.
According to the inquiry, around 22 percent of the first admissions in 2025 were in Berlin to substitute prison sentences attributed. This is not only ethically questionable, but also a huge loss for the country. According to the inquiry, an average day of detention in 2024 cost 226.97 euros.
In purely mathematical terms, the state of Berlin spent at least 5 million euros in 2025 to punish fare evaders. There could even be significantly more. The Senate Administration lists that a further 65,870 daily rates were served through “payment, work and substitute prison sentence” or “payment and substitute prison sentence”. There is no breakdown of how many days the defaulters actually spent. But if you assume a third of the daily rates, that would be around another 5 million euros per year.
Reforms needed
Around 3 million euros had to be saved in each of the two financial years 2024 and 2025. At that time, numerous rehabilitation projects fell victim to the Red Pen. The prison theater Aufbruch has to make do with 70 percent less; its continued existence is uncertain.
Schluesselburg and Lehmann are therefore calling for substitute prison sentences to be carried out openly in the future. The two SPD MPs appeal to Justice Senator Felor Badenberg (CDU): “If we finally create the basis for this in the new prison law, it must also become a reality.”
Initiatives such as the Freedom Fund, Those who have been campaigning against the practice of substitute prison sentences for years are, however, calling for offenses such as driving without a ticket to be completely decriminalized. Those affected would then not have to go to either open or closed prisons.
Abolition would also provide noticeable relief for prison staff. Because it is chronically understaffed, as the numbers show. According to the inquiry, the staff shortage has improved significantly compared to 2024, but still fluctuates between 5 and 10 percent. The understaffing in the medical service is particularly drastic: instead of the planned 35 doctors, only 23 work in the prison system.