This paper deals with some aspects of prison development during the last five years. Some apparent traits are focused on, in particular where these do not comply with the general, expected trends. Data presented here are primarily collected from the central record of the prison administration in Norway. I will briefly deal with five themes: 1. Crime rate in general and prison consequences 2. The number of prisoners and the level of punishment 3. The level of custody for remand prisoners 4. Age groups and rates of women and foreigners in prison 5. The threat of new crimes