One big difference between jail and prison is jails are generally only for short periods of time usually less than a year. Jails can also hold individuals waiting for trial, conviction, or sentencing they can also hold mentally ill individuals while waiting to be transferred to a mental health facility or juveniles waiting to be transferred. Prisons are long term they generally hold people that have been convicted of felonies and will be there for longer than a year most people in prison have pleaded guilty or have been found guilty in