<p>Labels for individuals involved in the criminal legal system (e.g., prisoner, offender, inmate) are dehumanizing and perpetuate stigma, contributing to re-offense as well as mental and behavioral health issues. There is a growing movement towards using person-centered language for individuals involved in the criminal legal system, however, it is unclear if such language has been adopted in academic literature. We examined empirical articles from four criminology journals to determine whether the use of labels has changed over a recent 10-year period and explore differences in label use across articles by identifying characteristics of articles that discuss individuals involved in the criminal legal system. Results yielded that the predicted probability of label use decreased from 99% in 2013 to 88% in 2022. While this is a significant decrease over time, more efforts are warranted to further decrease this high rate and examine how language choice in academic publications and other forms of media impact policy and public opinion. Authors affiliated with Criminology or Sociology/Anthropology departments had the highest rates of containing a label anywhere in the article. The findings demonstrate the research community’s trend towards decreasing the use of stigmatizing language, however, more research and conversation about humanizing language in academic research is vital in the pursuit of reducing stigma and discrimination for individuals involved in the criminal legal system.</p>