Just & Safe features detailed analyses across 18 US Cities, comparing police calls for service (CFS) data with department budgets and staffing information. The report also includes analyses of data from nine correctional agencies in five US jurisdictions. Just & Safe closes by highlighting the strategies, services, and programs that can be used to effectively reform, improve, and reduce police and corrections, while also increasing public safety. We can achieve both justice and safety!
Key Findings
Average % of city general fund budgets that goes to police departments
30.3%
Average % of PD budgets from general fund that goes to patrol division
36.3%
Estimated % of patrol time spent on CFS
90%
Average % of CFS that are noncriminal or low level
75%
NICJR found that 75% of calls for service are noncriminal or low level, and that patrol divisions make up the largest portion of police departments’ staffing and budgets. This leaves very few resources for the kind of focused enforcement and intelligence gathering necessary to significantly reduce violence and prevent serious crimes. The report highlights the importance of reforming police departments into Highly Accountable Learning Organizations (HALO) and pairing these reforms with greater investments in community-based public safety programs such as Community Emergency Response Networks and community violence intervention initiatives.
NICJR’s research also found that community corrections and supervision agencies across the nation are seeing significant decreases in their caseloads, yet many have budgets that continue to grow. Additionally, many agencies’ probation populations include a high proportion of people who are assessed as low risk, diluting the resources available to supervise and serve individuals who pose the greatest risk to public safety.
Just & Safe Case Studies
Alameda County Probation Department (ACPD): Population and Budget
ACPD Adult and Juvenile Supervision Populations
From 2019 to 2023, the number of adults under ACPD supervision decreased by nearly 2,900, from 8,115 people at the end of 2019 to 5,240 in mid-2023. Yet even as the population decreased drastically, over this same period, the ACPD budget increased by almost $50 million.
State of Maryland Probation and Parole: Populations and Budgets
Overall, too many law enforcement and correctional resources are focused on incidents and individuals that can be safely and effectively addressed by alternative means, allowing policing and correctional resources to focus on reducing and preventing serious crime and violence. The research presented in this report shows both the need for vast improvements of the criminal justice system and the immense opportunity to make communities both just and safe.