Foundational Elements and Structure for the National Law Enforcement Accountability Database

• NCJ Number: 307782
• Author(s): Matthew Hickman
• Date Published: February 2023
• Length: 27 pages
• Grant Number(s): RETA Contract
• Agencies: NIJ-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Report (Grant Sponsored); Research (Applied/Empirical)

Annotation

This document reports on a study that was undertaken to investigate and assess the feasibility of data requirements for the National Law Enforcement Accountability Database, described in Section 5 of Executive Order 14074.

Abstract

This final report discusses a study that addressed questions, issues, and concerns regarding the feasibility of data requirements for the National Law Enforcement Accountability Database (NLEAD), described in Section 5 of Executive Order (EO) 14074. The study centered around the following issues: challenges to developing a fully operational database meeting the required specifications; records that could be acquired from existing databases, other agencies and entities, court records, and reliable public sources of data; the structure of the database to account for legal requirements, privacy and fairness considerations; existing databases that could be adapted or expanded to align with the requirements of the EO; and any elements and factors beyond those described in the EO that should be considered when developing the database. The report discusses the scope of data reporting and contribution in the federal sector as well as the state and local sectors; it provides a summary of data sources and existing databases, with attention to promising models; it also addresses privacy, due process, corrections, and security issues, data governance, data volume and reporting burden, public reporting, NLEAD “ownership,” and additional legislation and support. Next steps recommended in the report include a systematic assessment of the current state of case management systems, and engaging in ongoing outreach efforts to the law enforcement community and public.