“When people see data that proves positive outcomes, they have more assurance about releasing people back into the community. We try to balance that value of helping that person with the value of keeping the community safe."
Hillary Hartoin, Director, Cass County, Indiana, Court and Pretrial Services
Data Infrastructure
Data is crucial for assessing the success or failure of pretrial improvements. But most jurisdictions lack the data to measure pretrial outcomes. As a result, anecdotes and isolated tragedies can influence pretrial practices.
Making criminal legal system data available and accessible to system and community stakeholders is essential to achieving pretrial justice. With reliable data, a jurisdiction can review outcomes and measure its performance.
Data allows pretrial practitioners and community members to determine whether they are meeting their pretrial goals, for example:
- How many people are being released and detained, and what are their charges and demographics?
- To what extent are people on pretrial release remaining arrest-free and appearing in court?
- How has the jail’s pretrial population changed since the implementation of new practices?
Too often, individual anecdotes influence pretrial policies and practices. Using data provides a more complete understanding of a pretrial system’s strengths and opportunities for improvement.
Resources
- Guide to Pretrial Performance Measures View the Guide
- Pretrial Performance Measures Training Watch the Training
- Jail Overview View the Resource
- Collecting Race and Ethnicity Data: Guidelines (PDF) Download the Guidelines
- Using Data to Explore Racial & Ethnic Disparities (PDF) Download the Brief