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New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS)
DCJS enhances public safety by providing resources and services that inform decision making and improve the quality of the criminal justice system.
The agency provides direct training to law enforcement and other criminal justice professionals; oversees a law enforcement accreditation program; ensures Breathalyzer and speed enforcement equipment used by local law enforcement operate correctly; manages criminal justice grant funds; analyzes statewide crime and program data; provides research support; oversees county probation departments and alternatives to incarceration programs; and coordinates juvenile justice policy.
DCJS maintains criminal history records and fingerprint files and performs background checks for employment and licensure. The agency also administers the state’s Sex Offender Registry; the Missing Persons Clearinghouse; the state's DNA Databank in cooperation with the New York State Police Forensic Investigation Center; and provides staff support to independently appointed commissions and councils, including the New York State Commission on Forensic Science, which monitors and accredits the state’s forensic laboratories.
New York City Criminal Justice Agency (CJA)
The mission of the New York City Criminal Justice Agency, Inc., is to assist the courts and the City in reducing unnecessary pretrial detention.
In accordance with this mission, CJA conducts a pre-arraignment interview and makes a release recommendation assessing defendants' likelihood of returning to court; notifies released defendants of upcoming court dates to reduce the rate of non-appearance; operates Supervised Release programs to serve eligible defendants who would otherwise be held in jail; assists Alternatives-to-Incarceration programs in screening defendants for a range of non-custodial sentencing sanctions; and provides information and research services to criminal justice policy makers, City officials, and the public.
American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC)
Currently, nearly one in every 100 American adults is behind bars and once released from prison more than four in ten return within three years. This failing system costs federal, state and local governments approximately $85 billion, yet does not deliver adequate public safety results for taxpayers and victims. In addition to the enormous budgetary costs, our current criminal justice system places tremendous human costs on society.
In response, the American Legislative Exchange Council began its work in Criminal Justice Reform, aimed to advance proven criminal justice reforms based on over two decades of data-driven research and practice.
Members of the Criminal Justice Reform Task Force advance solutions that refocus criminal justice resources on dangerous offenders and put the right programs in place to hold non-violent offenders accountable while providing them with the resources they need to become contributing members of society. The Criminal Justice Reform Task Force focuses on three key areas: Corrections and Reentry, Pretrial Release and Overcriminalization.
Urban Institute - Justice Policy Center
Urban's mission is to open minds, shape decisions, and offer solutions through economic and social policy research.
The Urban Institute is the United States’ leading research organization dedicated to developing evidence-based insights that improve people’s lives and strengthen communities. With nearly 50 years of expertise, Urban is a trusted resource for timely, nuanced analysis of social and economic policy.
At Urban, facts matter. We are truth-seekers. We follow the evidence, even when the direction is unexpected. That’s why policymakers and advocates across the ideological spectrum count on Urban to deliver impartial data to help shape decisions that affect every individual, city, and state.
But our work doesn’t end with the research. We translate and apply facts to today’s world — to the family struggling to make ends meet, to the small town on the brink of growth, to the community battling a public health crisis. We also collaborate with lawmakers, community leaders, corporations, and grassroots change-makers to diagnose problems, unearth solutions, and design road maps for change.
PRISON Policy Initiative
The non-profit, non-partisan Prison Policy Initiative produces cutting edge research to expose the broader harm of mass criminalization, and then sparks advocacy campaigns to create a more just society.
WHO WE ARE
Peter Wagner co-founded the Prison Policy Initiative in 2001 to document and publicize how mass incarceration punishes our entire society. Through groundbreaking research, innovative media work, and intersectional organizing, our staff members shape national reform campaigns from our office in Western Massachusetts.
