Projects

The Criminal Justice Administrative Records System (CJARS) is a cutting-edge data platform seeking to fundamentally transform research and statistical reporting on the U.S. criminal justice system. The ultimate aim is to improve public administration through next generation evidence-based policy making. CJARS is the first integrated national data repository that follows individual offenses from arrest to charge, from conviction to sanction. Data comes from different types of agencies and numerous jurisdictions, and is harmonized into a common schema at the University of Michigan. In partnership with the U.S. Census Bureau, CJARS data are linked at the person-level to confidential social, economic, and demographic data held by the federal government to produce novel empirical analysis of criminal justice caseloads and policy outcomes. CJARS was founded in 2016 and has received funding from the National Science Foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Laura and John Arnold Foundation.