Washington, DC – In 2023, the US Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) partnered with Urban’s Justice Policy Center to manage the Census of Prosecutor Offices (CPO), an effort to collect and report data from the nation’s prosecutor offices. As part of the multiyear research initiative, the CPO team will be seeking input from prosecutors to ensure the census questions accurately reflect current practices and challenges in state and local prosecutor offices.
The data obtained from the CPO will provide the most complete information about state and local prosecution activities across the nation. The findings of the 2024 CPO will serve as a key resource for prosecutors, other criminal justice professionals, researchers, policymakers, and the public.
National Census of Prosecutor Offices
The CPO plans to collect essential operational, staffing, and caseload information from more than 2,330 prosecutor offices across the United States. This initiative will update and expand upon data last collected from a sample of prosecutor offices in 2020 and data last collected from a census of prosecutor offices in 2007, addressing the critical need for current, comprehensive insights into prosecutorial practices nationwide.
The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on office operations, staffing challenges, and innovative approaches to reducing incarceration and promoting justice are among the topics BJS and Urban plan to explore adding to the CPO. The inclusion of data on specialized prosecution units and the trend toward increasing the availability of prosecutorial data are also being considered. The CPO team aims to ensure high response rates across diverse jurisdictions, with a particular focus on engaging harder-to-reach small and rural offices.
Persons with general questions about the CPO, should email BJS project manager George (Ebo) Browne at [email protected]. Media seeking more information about the 2024 Census of Prosecutor Offices should email [email protected].
About the Urban Institute’s Justice Policy Center
The Urban Institute’s Justice Policy Center works to inform solutions to crime and safety. By conducting rigorous research and policy analysis, we provide the best data, guidance, training, and technical assistance to our partners that share a mission to promote functional and fair justice systems. For more evidence on justice and safety, visit urban.org/justice-policy-center.
About the Urban Institute
The Urban Institute is a nonprofit research organization that provides data and evidence to help advance upward mobility and equity. We are a trusted source for changemakers who seek to strengthen decisionmaking, create inclusive economic growth, and improve the well-being of families and communities. For more than 50 years, Urban has delivered facts that inspire solutions—and this remains our charge today.
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