The average [US] Federal prison cell is 80 square feet—yet it costs taxpayers roughly $170,000 to build and activate and another $24,500 per year to confine a Federal inmate. At present, BOP incarcerates over 174,000 inmates, of which nearly 27,000 are in contract beds. This represents a $25-billion investment and almost $4 billion in annual costs.
THINKING OUTSIDE THE “80-SQUARE-FOOT” BOX

Here you've got a guy, say he's used some of the "killer weed," marijuana (competition for the Republican pushed tobacco). Does it make sense to spend $43,700.00 a year to lock the guy in prison? Wouldn't there be a great advantage to letting him be a taxpayer instead of a tax-spender?

Prison Costs