Real-time measurement of crime in the U.S.

• In Event: Advances in Measurement

Abstract

One of the most significant limitations in the field today is the inability to measure crime rates across jurisdictions in a timely manner. The Uniform Crime Reports (UCR), for example, are released at yearly intervals and are generally several years old before released in comprehensive form. This paper investigates an alternate national data set which is available in real time: the national Wanted Persons file, an operational data set which records information about all warrants entered into the National Criminal Information Center (NCIC) system from all local, state, or federal agencies—a data set which can facilitate real time statistical reporting by crime types, demographics, and various levels of geography. The study compares 2013 UCR to the 2013 Wanted Persons data to test whether the warrant information can be used as a real time proxy for crime rates.

Authors

• David M. Bierie, United States Marshals Service

• Michael Rocque, Bates College