Skip to Main Content

RTI uses cookies to offer you the best experience online. By and clicking “accept” on this website, you opt in and you agree to the use of cookies. If you would like to know more about how RTI uses cookies and how to manage them please view our Privacy Policy here. You can “opt out” or change your mind by visiting: http://optout.aboutads.info/. Click “accept” to agree.

Accept
RTI International
  • About
    • Office Locations
    • Executive Leadership
    • Corporate Governance
    • Partner with Us
      • U.S. Government
      • Clients and Funding Agencies
      • Industry and Commercial Clients
      • Foundations and Associations
      • Bilateral Agencies and Multilateral Banks
      • Universities and Academic Research Institutions
      • Suppliers and Small Businesses
    • Commitment to Quality
      • RTI's Client Listening Program
    • Ethics and Human Research Protection
    • Living Our Mission
    • Veteran Opportunities at RTI

    About

  • Practice Areas
    • Health
      • Public Health and Well-Being
      • Health Care Transformation
      • Behavioral Health
      • Health Behavior Change
      • Precision Medicine
      • RTI Health Solutions (RTI-HS)
      • RTI Center for Community Health Evaluation and Economics Research
      • Health Equity
    • Transformative Research Unit for Equity​
      • Equity Capacity Building Hub
      • Social and Economic Justice Research Collaborative
      • Narrative Research and Community Engagement Lab
    • Education and Workforce Development
      • Early Childhood
      • K-12 Education
      • Postsecondary Education
      • Career and Adult Education and Workforce Development
      • Education Policy, Systems, and Governance
      • Education Research Methodologies
      • Education Technologies
    • International Development
      • Energy for Development
      • Environment
      • Global Food Security, Agriculture, and Nutrition
      • Global Health
      • Governance
      • International Education
      • Monitoring, Evaluation, Research, Learning, and Adapting (MERLA)
      • Youth and Economic Opportunity
      • Building Resilience Against COVID-19 in Developing Countries
      • Water
    • Climate Change
      • Clean Energy Technology and Renewables
      • Climate Finance
      • Climate Justice and Equity
      • Climate Planning, Preparedness and Resilience
      • Climate Policy
      • Climate Vulnerability, Adaptation, and Mitigation
      • Economic Impacts of Climate Change
    • Water
      • Food-Energy-Water Nexus
      • Water Quality
      • Water Sector Governance
      • Urban Sanitation
      • Water Service Provider Strengthening
      • Water Resources Management
    • Energy Research
      • Carbon Capture and Utilization
      • Biomass Conversion
      • Natural Gas
      • Energy Efficiency
      • Industrial Water
      • Syngas Processing
    • Environmental Sciences
      • Air Quality
      • RTI Center for Water Resources
      • Urban Sustainability
      • Toxics
      • Building Resiliency in the FEW Nexus
      • Climate Change Sciences and Analysis
      • Environmental Policy
      • Environmental Justice
      • Sustainable Materials & Waste Management Solutions
    • Justice Research and Policy
      • RTI Center for Community Safety and Crime Prevention
      • RTI Center for Policing Research and Investigative Science
      • Child Well-Being and Family Strengthening
      • RTI Center for Forensic Sciences
    • Food Security and Agriculture
      • Market Systems Strengthening
      • Food Safety
      • Food and Nutrition
      • Global Food Security, Agriculture, and Nutrition
      • Climate-Smart Agriculture
      • Agricultural Innovation
      • Obesity Prevention
    • Innovation Ecosystems
      • Innovation Advising
      • Innovation for Economic Growth
      • Innovation for Emerging and Developing Economies
      • Innovation for Organizations
      • Research, Technology, and Innovation Policy
      • Technology Acceleration
    • Military Support
      • Military Behavioral Health
      • Military Health and Human Performance
      • Military Sexual Assault, Harassment, and Domestic Violence Prevention
      • Wearable Sensor Technologies
      • Military Health System Transformation

    Practice Areas

  • Services + Capabilities
    • Surveys and Data Collection
      • Survey Design
      • Instrument Development
      • Survey Methodologies
      • Data Collection
      • Establishment Surveys
      • Health Registries
      • Data Analysis and Reporting
      • Research Operations Center
    • Statistics and Data Science
      • Survey Statistics
      • Environmental Statistics
      • Coordinating Centers for Multisite Studies
      • Analysis and Design of Complex Data
      • Biostatistics
      • RTI Center for Data Science
    • Evaluation, Assessment and Analysis
      • Evaluation Design and Execution
      • Advanced Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods
      • Evaluation, Monitoring, and Assessment
      • Economic Analysis
      • Evaluating Communication Interventions and Campaigns
      • Evidence Synthesis for Policy and Practice
      • Risk Assessment and Prediction
    • Program Design and Implementation
      • Systems Strengthening and Scaling
      • Capacity Assessment and Building
      • Policy Reform Support
      • Curriculum and Teacher Professional Development
      • Interventions and Prevention Programs
      • Implementation Science
    • Digital Solutions for Social Impact
      • Human-Centered Design of Digital Solutions
      • Digital Product Development
      • Digital Communication Campaigns
      • Digital Data Analytics
    • Research Technologies
      • Survey Technologies
      • Data Management and Decision Support Systems
      • Geospatial Science, Technology, and Visualization
      • ICT for Limited-Resource Settings
      • Mobile Applications
      • Web Applications
      • Bioinformatics
      • Interactive Computing
    • Drug Discovery and Development
      • Medicinal Chemistry
      • Molecular Design and Cheminformatics
      • Behavioral Pharmacology
      • Drug Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics (DMPK)
      • In Vitro Pharmacology, Bioassay Development, and High-Throughput Screening (HTS)
      • Isotope Labeling
      • Regulatory Consulting and Support for Medical Products
    • Analytical Laboratory Sciences
      • Bioanalytical and Toxicology Research
      • Forensic Sciences
      • Physicochemical Characterizations
      • Metabolomics
      • Proficiency Testing and Reference Materials
      • Microbiology
      • Analytical Chemistry and Pharmaceutics
    • Engineering & Technology R&D
      • Biomedical Technologies
      • Decarbonization Sciences
      • Environmental Exposure & Protection
      • Materials & Environment
      • Sustainable Energy Solutions

    Services + Capabilities

  • Centers
    • RTI Center for Advanced Methods Development
    • RTI Center for Communication Science
      • Communication Research
      • Communication Design
      • Communication Delivery
    • RTI Center for Data Science
    • RTI Center for Education Services
      • Teaching and Learning
      • Education Leadership
      • Peer Learning Networks
      • Strategic Consulting
    • RTI Center for Forensic Sciences
    • RTI Center for Global Noncommunicable Diseases
      • Program Financing & Economics for NCDs
      • Health Systems Strengthening for NCDs
      • Communication Science and Behavior Change for NCDs
      • Implementation Science for NCDs
    • RTI GenOmics, Bioinformatics, and Translational Research Center
      • Disability Studies
      • Ethics
      • Newborn Screening
    • RTI Center for Water Resources
      • Water Resources Sectors
      • Water Resources Services
      • Water Resources Tools
    • RTI Global Gender Center
    • North Carolina Center for Optimizing Military Performance
    • NCCU-RTI Center for Applied Research in Environmental Sciences
    • RTI Center for Climate Solutions

    Centers

  • Impact
    • Newsroom
    • Insights Blog
    • Events
    • Publications
    • RTI Press
      • About the RTI Press
      • Instructions for Authors
      • RTI Press Collections
    • Projects
    • Global Reach
      • Asia
      • Eastern Europe and Central Asia
      • RTI International India
      • Africa
      • Middle East and North Africa (MENA)
      • Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC)

    Impact

  • Experts
    • Our Experts
    • In-Depth With Our Experts
    • Related News
    • Experts In the Media
    • RTI Fellow Program

    Experts

  • Emerging Issues
    • COVID-19 Research
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Global Health Security
    • Cannabis Research
    • Opioid Research
      • Interventions for Opioid Use Disorders
      • Preventing Opioid Misuse and Overdose
      • Treating Opioid Use Disorders
    • Policing Research and Investigative Science
    • Drone Research and Application
    • E-cigarette Research
    • Zika Virus Research
    • Integrated Governance

    Emerging Issues

  • COVID-19 Research + Response
  • Global Reach
  • Insights Blog
  • Newsroom
  • RTI Press
  • Publications
  • Partner With Us
  • Careers
  • Facebook IconTwitter IconInstagram IconYouTube IconLinkedin Icon
Impact

Redesigning the Arrest-Related Deaths Program

  • Home
  • Impact
  • Redesigning the Arrest-Related Deaths Program

A rigorous method to track the number of people who die during the process of arrest

The summer of 2020 saw the United States once again grappling with its painful history of racism. Civil unrest broke out after the release of a bystander’s harrowing video that showed the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis Police Department officers. But George Floyd was only the latest in a long line of individuals who die during an encounter with the police. Each death is a tragedy in itself; but as black individuals are disproportionately killed during encounters with police compared to whites, the losses are a testament to the harm that institutional racism has caused for generations.

RTI is at the forefront of the effort to use scientific methods to the effort to understand the impact of police violence across the country. Beginning in 2011, we worked with the Bureau of Justice Statistics on the Arrest-Related Deaths program, devising a method to create reliable, national data on deaths that occur during the process of arrest. This includes homicides by law enforcement personnel along with deaths attributed to suicide, accidental injury, and natural causes.

Our work advanced the rigor and accuracy of data collection on this critical issue. Previously, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Justice Statistics maintained separate datasets on arrest-related deaths, relying on voluntary submission of information. We found that these methods did not capture the full scope of the problem—in fact, they missed as many as half of all homicides by law enforcement officers. We set out to fill in the gaps.

Addressing Flaws in Past Efforts to Collect Data on Arrest-Related Deaths

In accordance with the Death in Custody Reporting Act of 2000, BJS began collecting data on deaths that occurred in police custody during transfer and during the process of arrest. The ARD program, launched in 2003, is part of the Death in Custody Reporting Program, which also collects information on deaths that occur in jails and in prisons.

At launch the ARD program relied heavily on voluntary participation from law enforcement agencies to report the information, and many failed to do so. As a result, the ARD program did not capture all reportable deaths in the process of arrest. In fact, a study conducted by RTI International found that those efforts by BJS and the FBI missed as many as half of the homicides by law enforcement officers.

Due to the limitations of the ARD program, BJS suspended the collection and reporting of arrest-related deaths in 2014.

A Hybrid Process for Accurately Coding and Classifying Deaths in Custody

Our latest work demonstrates that combining approaches to identify arrest-related deaths—particularly open-source information review and survey of law enforcement agencies and coroner’s offices—can yield a better estimate of the prevalence and characteristics of arrest-related deaths in the United States.

To gain a comprehensive picture of arrest-related deaths, RTI and BJS devised a hybrid, two-step process to identify, confirm, and collect information about arrest-related deaths. Our data scientists developed an automated text analysis method to identify reports of potential arrest-related deaths from more than 100,000 relevant media outlets. Using sophisticated machine learning algorithms, we flagged and manually reviewed news articles about potential arrest-related deaths. We then surveyed law enforcement agencies and coroner’s offices to confirm deaths identified through the open data review and to provide more complete and accurate incident detail. We surveyed these agencies as well as a sample of additional agencies to identify other deaths not found in media sources.

For this initial effort, reviews of media reports in the United States from June 1, 2015, through March 31, 2016, produced 1,348 potential arrest-related deaths. We found that arrest-related deaths occurred in all 50 states during that period, with the largest number (224) occurring in California. Washington, DC, Wyoming, and New Mexico had the highest rate of potential arrest-related deaths, whereas New Jersey, New York, and Rhode Island had the lowest rates.

We then narrowed the focus to June, July, and August 2015, and conducted a survey of law enforcement agencies and coroner’s offices for official reports and information about the 376 arrest-related deaths identified through open-source review in those three months. This second review identified 424 arrest-related deaths during that time period—13 percent more than reported in the media. Of these 424 deaths, 63 percent were classified as homicide, 18 percent as suicide, 12 percent as accidents, 1 percent as natural causes, 2 percent as undetermined, and 4 percent as pending further investigation.  Law enforcement homicides were largely reported in the media, but other manners of death were likely to be identified from law enforcement agencies directly.

Based on those two surveys, we were able to estimate that approximately 1,900 people die annually while in police custody.

Eliminating Gaps in Data to Inform Public Discourse, Research, and Policy Decisions

Our efforts to develop a reliable and accurate process for tracking arrest-related deaths provide a useful tool for understanding the prevalence and characteristics of these incidents.

Currently, there is no federally sponsored data collection program that adequately measures all manners of arrest-related deaths in the United States, but our new methodology can eliminate that gap.  Using information readily available online, we can standardize data collection, streamline the collection process, and improve the reliance on the voluntary reporting by the more than 18,000 local law enforcement agencies in the U.S. As reported in The Guardian, this system is the most comprehensive official effort so far to accurately record the number of deaths at the hands of American law enforcement and to provide the “national, consistent data” described in 2015 by the U.S. Attorney General.

Such information is invaluable for criminal justice researchers and law enforcement agencies to understand the scope of the issue, as well as to determine whether arrest-related deaths are a growing problem or whether heightened media awareness is simply bringing more attention to the issue.

Equally important, our accurate method can provide policy makers and law enforcement agencies information that can be used to develop new policies and practices to reduce or eliminate deaths during the arrest process.

An Ongoing Need for Reliable Data

The nation’s quest to understand the circumstances that lead to deaths during arrests has grown more intense in the years since we worked on this project. Many law enforcement agencies have stepped up their response.

RTI is currently working with BJS to implement the Federal Law Enforcement Agency Deaths in Custody Reporting Program. We are collecting data on the deaths of individuals in the custody of the FBI, U.S. Marshals Service, Drug Enforcement Administration, and other federal agencies.

In early 2019, the FBI began collecting data on the use of force. This program expands on previous efforts by including incidents that result in serious injury, as well as homicides. However, it still relies on voluntary reporting from law enforcement agencies and does not capture deaths due to accidents and natural causes. Many state and local jurisdictions have begun to require agencies to report these incidents, and media-based and crowdsourced tools have emerged to help fill in the gaps.

Completing the picture of arrest-related deaths through more complete, consistent data is important at this moment in history. As we learn more about the short- and long-term context of these incidents, we improve the ability of law enforcement to serve society.

Share

Clients

  • Bureau of Justice Statistics

Our Experts

Duren Banks Division Vice President, Division for Applied Justice Research (AJR)
Gayle Bieler Senior Director, Center for Data Science

Practice Areas

RTI Center for Policing Research and Investigative Science

Video

RTI International Data Scientist Peter Baumgartner - 2018 Tom Tom Founders Festival

This project was conducted with funds awarded by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice. The views, opinions, and content expressed in this exhibition do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or policies of the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), the Office of Justice Programs (OJP), or the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).

Learn More

Report: Arrest-Related Deaths Program Redesign Study, 2015-16: Preliminary Findings

Coverage in The Guardian (2015)

Coverage in The Guardian (2016)

Coverage on 538.com

RTI Logo
Partner With Us
  • US Government
  • Commercial
  • Foundations & Associations
  • Multilateral Donors
  • Universities
  • Suppliers
Site
  • Privacy Policy
  • Security Policy
  • Site Map
  • Terms of Use
  • Accessibility
  • Contact Us
Contact Us
Facebook Icon Twitter Icon Instagram Icon YouTube Icon Linkedin Icon
delivering the promise of science
for global good
RTI Health Solutions RTI Innovation Advisors RTI Health Advance

© 2022 RTI International. RTI International is a trade name of Research Triangle Institute. RTI and the RTI logo are U.S. registered trademarks of Research Triangle Institute.