Don, what is national policy in a nation which has certain amounts of state autonomy? Certainly when state's police forces get to violent, the federal government steps in and riegns them back, however, violence alone is not what a police state is all about, it is about control of a society by internal force. As you say 2.3 million in jail is a simptom of a sick nation, but, it is not that there are that many people who need to be in jail, it means abstract force is being used to deal with probles which sould be solved by school and work opportunites... and police are the state arm who to the intitial intake on this problem... but if you are White and Bob Dylan, the chances are that the vehical of this initial intake will not wind you up in jail, if you are part of the race and class the the 2.3 million represent, most likely you will.
Cheers, lor