The Purpose of Crime Data
Since time immemorial, federal, state, county, tribal and local law enforcement agencies in the United States have regularly and voluntarily offered credible sets of crime statistics under the umbrella of the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) program. The UCR program is administered by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) whereby the agencies periodically publish reports on crime statistics to the general public (Chainey & Tompson, 2012). Through the UCR Program, law enforcement agencies have adequately predicted the patterns in crime wherein they can anticipate the increased risk of crime across the country. Crime data is also crucial in assisting professionals in the criminal justice system to design and implement policies that effectively work towards preventing the anticipated crime from occurring (Chainey & Tompson, 2012). Therefore, crime data is significant in policing as it helps law enforcement officers to concentrate on specific areas and hence allow criminal justice resources to be used appropriately.
The primary objective of crime data centers on helping the criminal justice system to develop practical tools that would decrease future crimes. Through this goal, law enforcement agencies foster and improve community relations. The current body of research on the relevance of crime data in enhancing policies has revealed that, although crime data is insufficient in forecasting crime trends in contemporary times, it is a reliable tool to improve relations with the community. Chainey & Tompson (2012) states that reporting data about the crime to the public plays a vital role in increasing transparency among the citizens. while critics argue that crime statistics open professionals in the criminal justice system to scrutiny, advocates for crime data reporting have established that the tool function to allow for dialogue between the police and the community they serve. Similar to other government agencies, the general public has the right to be informed about the patterns of crimes and how effective the law enforcement authorities are protecting them (Chainey & Tompson, 2012). Consequently, crime data does not only provide the criminal justice experts with a tool to decrease future crimes but also increases trust in the criminal justice system among the members of the community, thus creating good working relationships, especially regarding community policing.
Crime statistics are also fundamental in the budget formation process at both local, state, and federal levels. Budgets form a crucial aspect of law enforcement since they ensure that the criminal justice system allocates adequate funds to the appropriate programs to keep communities safe. Over the years, law enforcement agencies have relied on crime statistics to create accurate budgets for effective policing (MacDonald, 2012). Crime data reveals to professionals within the system the areas where either more or fewer resources are required to improve the safety of the community. Thus, without crime data, it would be challenging for professionals in the criminal justice system to create accurate budgets for law enforcement.
Criminal justice professionals also depend on crime statistics for initiative assessment which are aimed at decreasing the rate of crime. Crime data serves a pertinent role in determining whether crime elimination programs are working, or whether adjustments are required to improve their efficacy (MacDonald, 2012). Crime statistics released by the Uniform Crime Reporting program have been significant in helping law enforcement experts assess whether crimes are rising or decreasing in the targeted regions. Hence, the assessment of crime data can help them evaluate whether crime reduction initiatives are successful.
The United States Criminal Justice System has set two measures of crime including the National Crime Victimization Survey and the Uniform Crime Reporting program. The Uniform Crime Reporting program was established in the 1930s as a replacement of the International Association of Chief of Police (IACP) (Krohn et al., 2010). Since its inception, the FBI has administered the UCR by collecting information relating to crimes such as robbery, forcible rape, aggravated assault, arson, motor vehicle theft, larceny-theft, burglary, murder, and non-negligent manslaughter. Through the UCR program, law enforcement officers compile data from monthly individual crime incident records and law enforcement records that are conveyed to the centralized state law enforcement authorities or records transmitted directly to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (Krohn et al., 2010). Krohn et al. (2010) affirm that the UCR program has proved to be an effective tool over the years as it thoroughly evaluates every report it receives for deviations, accuracy, and reasonableness that may reveal errors. This implies that large variations in the crime levels recorded could show changes in jurisdiction territories or incomplete reporting (Krohn et al., 2010). Therefore, the UCR program offers statistics about the number of crimes across the U. S in addition to the number of people arrested, their demographics such as race, sex, and age, the number of crimes cleared as well as the law enforcement personnel.
Apart from the UCR program, the criminal justice system has also set the National Crime Victimization Survey as a measure of crime. The Bureau of Justice Statistics administers the NCVS which was established in 1973 to provide a comprehensive analysis of crimes, victims, and trends in crime incidents. The NCVS focuses on collecting information on crimes encountered by families and individuals, regardless of whether or not the crimes were reported to the police (Krohn et al., 2010). It also provides the victims’ reasons for reporting or not reporting the crimes. Additionally, the National Crime Victimization Survey is bestowed with the responsibility of providing detailed information about the victims including their income, educational level, marital status, sex, age, ethnicity, and race. It also addresses questions regarding the victims’ self-protective measures they used, possible substance abuse by the perpetrators of crimes as well as experiences with the criminal justice system (Krohn et al., 2010). Currently, the crime data reports published by the BJS’s related to the National Crime Victimization Survey include annual reports that cover a wide spectrum of comprehensive information related to victimization and crime, Criminal Victimization across the United States as well as the National Victimization Analysis Tool-an online database wherein users examine crime counts and victimization rates.
References
Chainey, S., & Tompson, L. (2012). Engagement, empowerment, and transparency: publishing crime statistics using online crime mapping. Policing: A Journal of Policy and Practice, 6(3), 228-239.
Krohn, M. D., Thornberry, T. P., Gibson, C. L., & Baldwin, J. M. (2010). The development and impact of self-report measures of crime and delinquency. Journal of Quantitative Criminology, 26(4), 509-525.
MacDonald, Z. (2012). Official crime statistics: their use and interpretation. The Economic Journal, 112(477), F85-F106.