NCJ Number
210472
Journal
Law Enforcement Technology Volume: 32 Issue: 6 Dated: June 2005 Pages: 67-68,70,76
Date Published
June 2005
Length
9 pages
Annotation
This article presents an overview of the function of the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) and the types of information it collects and analyzes.
Abstract
Celebrating 25 years under the Justice Systems Improvement Act with the name “BJS,” this component of the U.S. Department of Justice actually began operations in 1970 as the National Criminal Justice Information and Statistics Service. The duties of the BJS staff are enumerated and include the analysis of the operations of 50,000 criminal justice agencies, offices, courts, and institutions; the description of the characteristics and consequences of over 24 million criminal victimizations each year; and the maintenance of more than 36 major data collection series for reporting purposes. Major statistical series are published both annually and periodically by BJS, which include statistical information on criminal victimization, populations under correctional supervision, and school crime, among many other topics. BJS information collection strategies and resources are discussed and distinctions between BJS and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) data are illuminated. BJS strives to make statistical data easy to understand and use and, toward that end, provides a searchable Web site where data are easily accessible. Additionally, all BJS publications after 1994 are available on the Internet. Other resources offered by BJS are highlighted, such as the Crime Victimization Survey software that assists police agencies in conducting their own victimization surveys. Exhibits