Criminal record systems

The Firearm Inquiry Statistics (FIST) program collects information on firearm applications and denials and combines this information with the FBI's National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) transaction data to produce an estimated number of background checks for firearm transfers or permits since the effective date of the Brady Act in 1994.

BJS uses criminal history records to study the number and types of crimes committed by state prisoners both prior to and following their release. The first study tracked a sample of state prisoners released in 11 states in 1983, and the second study followed a sample of state prisoners released in 15 states in 1994. Both studies had a 3-year follow-up period. The latest study tracked a sample of prisoners released in 30 states in 2005 for 9 years after release.

The one-time survey provided national estimates of the recidivism rate of felons sentenced to probation in selected years. In the survey, samples of convicted felons placed on probation were tracked for three years, and data were compiled on the percentage of them who were are rearrested, reconvicted, or reimprisoned for new crimes within the three-year follow-up period. The various recidivism measures were based on official criminal history records maintained by each state.

Collects data used as the basis for estimating the percentage of total state records that are immediately available through the FBI's Interstate Identification Index (III) and the percentage that include dispositions. Other data collected include the number of records maintained by each state, the percentage of automated records in the system, and the number of states participating in the FBI's III.

References and classifies state legislation on privacy and security of state criminal history record information. Statutes are grouped into 29 categories and presented by classification and state. It is compiled every two years.

Since 1929, the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program has collected information about crimes known to law enforcement and arrests. The traditional UCR Summary Reporting System (SRS) collects monthly counts of the number of crimes known to law enforcement from thousands of agencies throughout the United States.