Research and development
Director's Message: Building Our Next Generation of Researchers
As colleges and universities across the country begin a new academic year, I want to discuss one of my high-priority goals — supporting the research activities of new and emerging scholars. These creative thinkers from a variety of disciplines are proposing innovative ideas to study and solve criminal justice problems. I am proud to offer my support in the form of fellowships and research assistantships...
Director's Message: Countering Violent Extremism with Research
At NIJ, we are dedicated to conducting and applying research in our efforts to find solutions to criminal justice problems. A great example of that dedication is exhibited in our robust research portfolio on domestic radicalization and countering violent extremism (CVE). NIJ has invested in almost two dozen research projects that aim to 1) understand how and why individuals radicalize to violence and 2) identify promising...
Director's Message: Developing a Comprehensive Response to Human Trafficking
As Attorney General Lynch has repeatedly said: human trafficking is modern day slavery. This grievous practice exists in contemporary society, and the U.S. is unfortunately no exception. National and worldwide campaigns have raised awareness and attracted attention and resources to this problem, but many questions remain. We still need to know more, for example, about how best to prevent and respond to human...
Director's Message: Restrictive Housing in the U.S.
Institutional corrections and, more specifically restrictive housing and other strategies that facilities use to manage and control incarcerated individuals, have become a national priority.
Restrictive housing, commonly known as solitary confinement or administrative segregation, is a common practice in corrections. A recent national...
Director's Message: Safety, Health and Wellness Strategic Plan
Planning NIJ’s Future Research Investments
Frequent readers of the Director’s Corner are well aware of my commitment to strengthening NIJ’s scientific endeavors while also strengthening the science that supports the criminal justice system. By advancing multidisciplinary research, connecting researchers and practitioners, and encouraging diversity in our investments, NIJ will be better able to inform our nation’s police officers, judges, lawyers, corrections officers, and policymakers of...
Director's Message: Shining Light on Wrongful Convictions
Every wrongful conviction is a miscarriage of justice that impacts every level of our society, often leading to questions about the fairness of the justice system. Wrongful convictions have a life-long impact on individuals who have been wrongfully convicted, the original victims of crime, and their families. To provide the wrongfully convicted an opportunity to prove their innocence through DNA analysis and to seek justice...
Strategic Research Plans: Defining Challenges, Inspiring Research
To support our strategic and overarching research goals, we have developed a series of strategic research plans on topics within crime and justice that span our two science offices. These plans build off of existing research knowledge; input about research needs gathered from practitioners, policymakers and researchers; and the priorities of Congress and the Administration.
We anticipate that investments made under these plans will dramatically...
Impression Evidence: Strengthening the Disciplines of Fingerprints, Firearms, Footwear, and Other Pattern and Impression Sciences Through Research
Forensic examinations involving specific forensic science disciplines are typically dependent upon qualitative analyses and expert interpretation of observed patterns based on a scientific foundation, rather than quantitative results. These disciplines include latent fingerprints, questioned documents, footwear, and other forms of impression and pattern evidence.
2011 NLECTC System Annual Report
2012 NLECTC System Annual Report
2010 NLECTC System Annual Report
National Survey of Internet- and Technology-Facilitated Child Exploitation, FY 2019
This project will support a national study of internet- and technology-facilitated child sexual exploitation, including the development, testing, and administration of a national data collection from law enforcement agencies to produce accurate and reliable national estimates of, information about, arrests for internet- and technology-facilitated child sexual exploitation crimes. This study will allow for the identification of new threats, problems and concerns encountered by law enforcement...