NCJ Number
77830
Date Published
1981
Length
285 pages
Annotation
This report describes the technical assistance projects developed for State and local government agencies for activities involving evaluation, planning, design, implementation, and operation of automated criminal justice information systems. Project objectives, plans, and activities, along with recommendations for future work, are discussed.
Abstract
In addition to administration of the project, the major task areas were to be a computerized criminal history (CCH) task, a jail accounting microcomputer system (JAMS), a geographic base file-dual independent map encoding (GBF-DIME) task, and a task to identify and address any other pertinent information system activities. For the CCH task, the status of intrastate CCH was assessed and a new program suggested -- Applied Systems and Standards to Improve State Technology (ASSIST) -- which would serve as a national systems and expertise source for efforts that exceed the resources of individual agencies. The current status and prospects of JAMS, for use in small- to medium-size jails, was also assessed. The JAMS concept was found to be sound, although the three demonstration systems surveyed would exhibit serious reliability and user-interface problems in full-scale jail operation if completed in their present form. Thus, a new design for JAMS is recommended. The GBF-DIME task resulted in insights regarding program planning and management, with emphasis on the need for program continuity. For future Federal programs that plan to use technical assistance, the report recommends that a coordination function that could provide information to both the providers and receivers of technical assistance be developed and that travel clearances be easier to obtain. Appendixes present the five final subtask reports which contain material describing major project activities and recommendations regarding CCH, JAMS, and GBF-DIME. Sample forms and data tables are included.