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, 2021	Mar. 31, 2020
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	$ 454,718	$ 491,101
Operating expenses	332,884	362,315
Operating income	6,539	59,019
General and administrative	(29,530)	(31,279)
Depreciation and amortization	(32,712)	(37,952)
Shareholder litigation expense	(51,745)
Asset impairments	(1,308)	(536)
Operating Segments
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	454,682	491,043
Operating expenses	332,801	362,140
Operating income	121,881	128,903
Operating Segments | Safety
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	409,769	437,765
Operating expenses	305,427	330,737
Operating income	104,342	107,028
Operating Segments | Community
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	23,658	30,599
Operating expenses	21,100	24,449
Operating income	2,558	6,150
Operating Segments | CoreCivic Properties
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	21,255	22,679
Operating expenses	6,274	6,954
Operating income	14,981	15,725
Segment Reconciling Items
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Other operating expense	(83)	(175)
General and administrative	(29,530)	(31,279)
Depreciation and amortization	(32,712)	(37,952)
Shareholder litigation expense	(51,745)
Asset impairments	(1,308)	(536)
Segment Reconciling Items | Other Revenue
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Revenue	$ 36	$ 58