Schedule of Revenue and Net Operating Income for Each of the Three Segments and a Reconciliation to CoreCivic's Operating Income (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2020	Mar. 31, 2019
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	$ 491,101	$ 484,064
Operating expenses	362,315	345,832
Operating income	59,019	73,264
General and administrative	(31,279)	(29,445)
Depreciation and amortization	(37,952)	(35,523)
Asset impairments	(536)
Operating Segments
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	491,043	483,996
Operating expenses	362,140	345,743
Operating income	128,903	138,253
Operating Segments | Safety
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	437,765	434,318
Operating expenses	330,737	316,595
Operating income	107,028	117,723
Operating Segments | Community
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	30,599	30,566
Operating expenses	24,449	23,496
Operating income	6,150	7,070
Operating Segments | CoreCivic Properties
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	22,679	19,112
Operating expenses	6,954	5,652
Operating income	15,725	13,460
Segment Reconciling Items
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Other operating expense	(175)	(89)
General and administrative	(31,279)	(29,445)
Depreciation and amortization	(37,952)	(35,523)
Asset impairments	(536)
Segment Reconciling Items | Other Revenue
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	$ 58	$ 68