Washington State County Criminal Justice Data Book: 1985 to 1995
February 1996
Introduction
The purpose of this report is to provide citizens, local, county, and state policy makers, criminal justice researchers and policy analysts with a comprehensive abstract of criminal justice data pertaining to counties in Washington State. This report provides the public with a summary of key criminal justice indicators such as crimes and arrests, jail populations, court filings and sentences, and admissions to prison over the last decade. It can serve as a foundation for more detailed research and analysis and will assist policy makers in making better informed decisions regarding the administration of justice at the state and local level.
The data are reported by county, and were collected from previously published annual reports and existing datasets maintained by the Department of Corrections, Office of the Administrator for the Courts, Office of Financial Management, Sentencing Guidelines Commission and the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs. Because the data were provided by five different state agencies, they must be interpreted with caution and with an appreciation for the differences inherent in the types of information provided. Each agency collates data from separately maintained databases or management information systems. Each system supports different clients' needs and business functions. Also, each system relies on unique information processing, verification standards, collection and classification methods, and reporting standards. This means the boundaries between these systems are not seamless. Each database describes part of the criminal justice process, but none were designed to be connected to each other for a comprehensive overview of the whole process. The data definitions and reporting categories used in this report are consistent with those of the contributing agencies. Furthermore, no attempt was made to collect missing or previously unreported data, nor to adjust for changes in data collection methods or information processing improvements. Consequently, reasonable caution must be used when developing performance measures that combine data from two or more sources, or when making comparisons between counties or over time. Researchers and policy analysts interested in conducting statistical analyses of these data are advised to contact the contributing agencies for more details.
This databook is unique. It is the only document that provides ten years of criminal justice data for each of the 39 counties in Washington State. The report combines data from the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government, across city, county, and state jurisdictions. This document is the direct result of agencies working together to share information and to make that information available to other interested parties.
This report will serve as a model for future inter-agency reports and will be available on the Office of Financial Management's Internet home page in the Spring of 1996. If you have questions or suggestions regarding the content of this report, please contact the Washington State Statistical Analysis Center at 360-902-0599 or by electronic mail at ofm.forecasting@ofm.wa.gov
Last modified: October 9, 2005
E-mail: OFM.Forecasting@ofm.wa.gov
