The National Institute of Justice Technology Assistance Activities Chris Tillery Associate Deputy Director For Science & Technology George.tillery@usdoj.gov
NIJ Overview
NIJ s Mission NIJ's principal authorities are derived from the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, as amended (see 42 USC 3721-3723) and Title II of the Homeland Security Act of 2002. Title II of the Homeland Security act as it relates to NIJ s Office of Science & Technology (OS&T) Research, development and evaluation arm of the Department of Justice Advances scientific research, development, and evaluation to enhance the criminal justice (CJ) system to increase public safety Emphasis on State and local practitioner needs Committed to scientific process of open competition, peerreviewed, published reports and archived data
NIJ s Customers Federal, state & local criminal justice practitioners 19,000 Law Enforcement Agencies 750,000 Law Enforcement Officers 4,451 Corrections Agencies (some overlap with Law Enforcement Agencies) 430,000 Corrections Officers 351 Crime Laboratories Courts, Probation & Parole, etc. Public Safety Community at-large Department of Justice Law enforcement components (when requirement overlap with state and local needs) OJP program offices, other Federal agencies Policymakers at all levels of government Researchers American public
NIJ s Location Within the Department National Institute of Justice Bureau of Justice Assistance Bureau of Justice Statistics Office for Victims of Crime Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention
Some of NIJ s Successes Community policing research and evaluation spurred community policing, a major nationwide shift in strategy Soft body armor development of armor, and subsequent testing of commercial products, has saved thousands of officers lives Domestic violence reduction research and evaluation established best practices to prevent/address these crimes Managing drug offenders evaluation established that drug treatment of offenders reduces crime in a cost-effective way Crime mapping innovative R&D and sharing of best practices catalyzed police and corrections to use sophisticated mapping tools Communications interoperability evaluations of switching technologies; frequency allocation database; Statement of requirements (now in SAFECOM) World Trade Center 9/11 victims Assistance in DNA identification. Establishing what doesn t work NIJ studies have identified programs that don t work, including boot camps, gun buybacks, Scared Straight
NIJ s Organization David W. Hagy Acting Principal Deputy Director International Center Office of Research & Evaluation Thom Feucht Deputy Director Office of Science & Technology John Morgan. Deputy Director Crime Control & Prevention Research Division Justice Systems Research Division Operational Technologies Division Investigative & Forensic Sciences Division Violence & Victimization Research Division Information & Sensor Technologies Division
Office of Research and Evaluation (ORE) Supports criminal justice operational research and evaluation On the criminal and juvenile justice systems from offending through justice agency operations including policing, courts, corrections, probation, and parole Supports basic research on the nature and causes of crime and criminal operations, including Terrorism Transnational Crime Trafficking in drugs, humans, and other fungible goods Identifies what works through experimentation, evaluation, modeling, and basic research Partners with, and disseminates information to, practitioners and policy makers at the Federal, State, and local levels
Office of Science & Technology (OS&T) Core missions Conduct research and development Adoption of improved tools and technologies into practice Law enforcement, corrections, crime laboratory, courts applications Establish and maintain advisory groups to assess technology needs Provide technology assistance National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center (NLECTC) System Establish and maintain performance standards Coordinate the Federal approach to CJ technology issues Execute the President s DNA Initiative Research and development and capacity building
NIJ s Current Investments Criminal and juvenile justice systems research & evaluation Law Enforcement/Policing (police fatigue studies, crime mapping, reducing gun violence) Program Evaluations (drug courts, federal prisoner reentry initiative) Justice Systems (criminal and juvenile) including Courts, Sentencing Corrections (prisoner management and violence reduction) Violence and Victimization (elder maltreatment, domestic violence, sexual assault) Technology research & development Development of new technologies for criminal justice (tools to deal with terrorist use of explosive devices, forensics, less-lethal technologies, biometrics, Information Led Policing (security, privacy, communications)) Test, evaluation, and standards development (AG s Body Armor Initiative, Electro-Muscular Disruption Device (EDD) safety and effectiveness study) Capacity building (President s DNA Initiative, forensic labs) Technology assistance Dissemination of knowledge Website, publications, conferences, technology centers etc.
President s DNA Initiative $1 billon, 5-year commitment to advance justice through DNA technology More must be done to realize the full potential of DNA technology Federal and state DNA collection and analysis systems need improvement Eliminating backlogs & strengthening crime laboratory capacity Public crime labs are overwhelmed by backlogs of unanalyzed samples High-profile successes in solving violent crimes across US Current priorities: grantee assessment, improving accreditation and quality assurance Research, development, demonstrations, and evaluations Developing better, faster, cheaper methods for analyzing DNA evidence in more cases Demonstrating and evaluating uses of DNA Training criminal justice professionals Using DNA to protect the innocent (post-conviction testing) Using DNA to identify missing persons
Summary High value of R&D oriented to needs of practitioners and policymakers in the field Practitioner involvement throughout the RDT&E process As national resource, NIJ is cost-effective 50 States can t afford their own NIJs National agency avoids duplication Funding opportunities www.ojp.usdoj.gov/nij/funding.htm See archived solicitations for validated practitioner needs in a wide variety of criminal justice application areas.
Technology Assistance
National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center (NLECTC) System Affiliated Activities
Role of the Center System The HSA identifies four basic missions for the NLECTC System: Scientific and technical support to NIJ s research, development, test and evaluation (RDT&E) projects; Support for the transfer and adoption of technology into practice by law enforcement and corrections agencies, courts and crime laboratories; Assistance in development and dissemination of technology guidelines and standards; Provision of technology assistance, information, and support to law enforcement and corrections agencies, courts and crime laboratories.
The Center System NLECTC Northwest Anchorage, AK NLECTC Rocky Mountain Denver, CO NLECTC West El Segundo, CA Border Research & Technology Center San Diego, CA Austin, TX Rural LE Technology Center Hazard, KY Weapons and Protective Equipment COE State College, PA NLECTC Northeast Rome, NY Sensors, Surveillance and Biometrics COE New York, NY Communications COE Camden, NJ Office of Law Enforcement Standards Gaithersburg, MD NLECTC National Rockville, MD Office of Law Enforcement Technology Commercialization Wheeling, WV Forensic Science COE Largo, FL NLECTC Southeast Charleston, SC National Law Enforcement & Corrections Technology Centers serving specific regions Specialty Offices and Centers
Roles of the Centers and Offices RULETC W NW Forensic Technologies Center Of Excellence Information and Geospatial Technology Center Of Excellence Identify technology requirements Assess and monitor R&E projects Test, evaluate and demonstrate technologies Support adoption of new technologies Assist in developing guides and standards Provide technology assistance On a national and a regional basis Sensor, Surveillance and Biometrics Technology Center Of Excellence SE National RM NE Clearinghouse for technology information Compliance testing program Assist in research investment prioritization Across investment portfolios Initial point of entry for technology assistance Across disciplines Communications Technology Center Of Excellence Weapons and Equipment Technology Center Of Excellence Standards Center
Standards & Testing Covers the spectrum of public safety technology requirements Ensure safe, dependable, effective equipment Executed by the Office of Law Enforcement Standards (OLES) at the National Institute of Standards and Technology Five thrusts: Performance testing methods Evidentiary materials examination methods Standards for equipment and operating procedures Standard reference materials Comparative Evaluations Patrol vehicles Patrol vehicle tires Replacement brake pads Cut, puncture, and pathogen-resistant protective gloves
Compliance Testing
Excess Property Program
Computer Assisted Pre-Coordination Resource Database System
Crime Laboratory and Forensic Assistance
The National Software Reference Library and Computer Forensic Tool Testing Program
The Electronic Crime Partnership Initiative
Other Activities
National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (namus.gov)
The DNA Initiative
For Further Information www.dna.gov www.nsrl.nist.gov www.caprad.nlectc.du.edu/cp/index.isp www.naums.gov www.nfstc.org www.ecpi-us.org www.justnet.org www.ojp.usdoj/nij