National Pretrial Reporting Program (NPRP) Prototype Survey

D R A F T [February 2014]
The Urban Institute
National Pretrial Reporting Program
Jurisdictional Capacity Survey
On behalf of the Bureau of Justice Statistics – the statistical research arm of the
U.S. Department of Justice – the Urban Institute (UI), a non-profit research
organization located in Washington, D.C., and the Pretrial Justice Institute (PJI)
are exploring the feasibility of collecting nationally representative statistics on
pretrial outcomes and performance. This effort is known as the National
Pretrial Reporting Program (NPRP). Generating nationally representative
statistics on pretrial practice is crucial for understanding national trends in
criminal case processing and identifying ways to improve system efficiency and
defendant outcomes.
To develop the data collection methods for NPRP, UI and PJI are fielding a survey to understand both
the variation in pretrial practices across jurisdictions and the information jurisdictions have available
about their pretrial populations. Your jurisdiction is one of several jurisdictions selected across the
country to participate in this jurisdictional capacity survey (JCS). Enclosed is a letter from the National
Association of Pretrial Services Agencies (NAPSA) and the National Association of Counties (NACo)
endorsing this survey.
Although this survey is voluntary, we appreciate your cooperation to make the results comprehensive,
accurate, and timely. Your feedback will be invaluable to our effort in identifying the types of pretrial
data that should be collected at the national level as well as the feasibility of collecting such data
elements. All answers, including your contact information, will be kept strictly confidential. Under the
BJS Use of Data Statute (42 U.S.C. § 3735): “Data collected by the Bureau shall be used only for
statistical or research purposes, and shall be gathered in a manner that precludes their use for law
enforcement or any purpose relating to a private person or public agency other than statistical or
research purposes.”
If you have questions about this survey or need assistance, please e-mail UI at NPRP@urban.org or call
UI at 1- 855-709-0870. Also, please feel free to contact Tracey Kyckelhahn, the BJS Project Manager, at
Tracey.Kyckelhahn@ojp.usdoj.gov should you have any questions about this project. Thank you for
your cooperation in this important data collection effort.
Sincerely,
Bureau of Justice Statistics
William J. Sabol, Ph.D.
Acting Director
Bureau of Justice Statistics

1

D R A F T [February 2014]
The Urban Institute
Instructions for Completing the Survey
1. The survey consists of 37 questions, some of which may require you to look up information or
consult with another agency in your jurisdiction. We do not expect that your agency will be able
to answer all or even the majority of the questions. This survey is simply intended to provide
feedback about the types of data elements that jurisdictions like yours collect about their
pretrial population and the effort required to compile such data. Therefore, any information
you provide will be useful; we are equally interested in learning about which questions you
cannot answer as we are in receiving completed responses. We also recognize that pulling
together this data may be a time-consuming process. Please complete all the questions that
you are able to and let us know how long each one took – the survey will prompt you to report
this information. Again, all of this feedback will be invaluable to us as part of the NPRP process.
2. We acknowledge that technical definitions for common terms relating to pretrial case
processing may vary widely across jurisdictions. Some of the legal and procedural terms used in
this survey may not be entirely clear or applicable to your jurisdiction. Please answer all
questions in a way that most closely reflects pretrial operations in your jurisdiction. Should you
need to give an explanation for an answer or define any of the terms used as they specifically
relate to your jurisdiction, please use the space provided at the end of the survey.
3. Please return the survey by Month-Day, 2014.
4. If you need assistance to answer any question, please email NPRP@urban.org or call UI at 1855-709-0870.

2

D R A F T [February 2014]
The Urban Institute
Survey Completed By:
First Name
Last Name
Position Title
_______________________ ________________________ _______________________________
Organization Name
Organization Type (e.g. jail, sheriff’s office, etc.)
_______________________________________
_________________________________________
Official Address
___________________________________________________________________________________
Telephone
Email
____________________________________________
____________________________________

SECTION A: PRETRIAL ORGANIZATION
A1. Is your agency responsible for reporting to another entity or authority on matters related to the
management of the pretrial population?
☐Yes
☐No
☐Other _____________
If yes, please list all the entities to which you report.
Entity Name
_______________________
_______________________
_______________________

Point of Contact
_______________________
_______________________
_______________________

Email and/or Telephone
_______________________
_______________________
_______________________

A2. Is your agency responsible for the supervision and/or treatment of pretrial defendants (in other
words, is your agency considered a pretrial agency)?
☐Yes
☐No
A3. Does your agency have access to case-level data regarding pretrial defendants?
☐Yes (skip to Section B)
☐No (skip to A4)

3

D R A F T [February 2014]
The Urban Institute
A4. If your agency is not responsible for pretrial defendants or your agency does not have access to
case-level data, please provide the following information for the agency/agencies that is/are
responsible for collecting and/or maintaining information on your jurisdiction’s pretrial population and
case-level data.
Entity Name
_______________________
_______________________
_______________________

Point of Contact
_______________________
_______________________
_______________________

Email and/or Telephone
_______________________
_______________________
_______________________

[Thank you for your time. You are now done with the survey. We will contact the appropriate agency
to complete the survey using the contact information you provided above.]

4

D R A F T [February 2014]
The Urban Institute

SECTION B: PRETRIAL POPULATION
B1. Please indicate the stages at which pretrial defendants are referred, or otherwise made known, to
your agency (check all that apply).
☐Arrest
☐Booking
☐Initial appearance
☐Arraignment
☐Preliminary hearing
☐Other _________________
Arrest

Booking

Initial
Appearance

Arraignment

Preliminary
Hearing

B2. Does the above figure closely reflect the general case flow of pretrial defendants in your
jurisdiction?
☐Yes
☐No
If no, please explain.

B3. Indicate the stages at which your agency collects or obtains access to case-level data on pretrial
defendants (check all that apply).
☐Arrest
☐Booking
☐Initial appearance
☐Arraignment
☐Preliminary hearing
The first stage you indicated above makes up your working definition of the pretrial population for
the remainder of this survey.

5

D R A F T [February 2014]
The Urban Institute
B4. In your jurisdiction, do the police issue a citation, or summons, to appear in court to an arrestee
accused of committing the following (check all that apply):
☐Traffic infractions
☐Petty offenses
☐Misdemeanors
☐Felonies
☐None of the above

6

D R A F T [February 2014]
The Urban Institute

SECTION C: PRETRIAL FUNCTIONS
C1. Does your jurisdiction use an actuarial risk assessment tool to assess the risk of pretrial defendants?
☐Yes
☐No
C1a. If yes, what is the name of the actuarial risk assessment tool that your jurisdiction uses?
_____________________________
C1b. How is information from the actuarial risk assessment tool maintained? (Check all that apply.)
☐Electronically
☐Paper files
☐Other _________________
C2. Please indicate the available supervision and treatment options for the pretrial population in your
jurisdiction. (Check all that apply.)
☐Curfews
☐Electronic monitoring
☐Supervision is not provided
☐Other (please specify) _________________
C2a. Please indicate the available treatment options for the pretrial population in your jurisdiction.
☐Substance abuse treatment
☐Mental health treatment
☐Treatment is not provided
☐Other (please specify) _________________
C3. Please indicate the financial release mechanisms that your jurisdiction offers.
☐Cash
☐Deposit bond
☐Surety bond
☐Property bond
☐Other (please specify) _________________

7

D R A F T [February 2014]
The Urban Institute
C3a. Please indicate the non-financial release mechanisms that your jurisdiction offers.
☐Citation
☐Release on recognizance
☐Unsecured bond
☐Supervised release
☐Other (please specify) _________________
C4. Does your jurisdiction allow defendants to be released on financial bond while under pretrial
supervision?
☐Yes
☐No

8

D R A F T [February 2014]
The Urban Institute

SECTION D: PRETRIAL RELEASE DECISION
D1. What was the caseload of the pretrial population (as defined in B3) for 2012?
___________

For questions D2 – D4
• Please report data for the total population only if it is not possible to distinguish
between felony and misdemeanor charges.
• If exact numbers are not available, please provide best estimates. Indicate that
you have provided an estimate by checking the “Est.” box.
• If you are not able to provide an estimate, please write “-99” in each box.

D2. While awaiting case adjudication, how many of the defendant population in 2012, as reported in
D1, were:
Felony (#)

Released

(Most serious charge)

Est.
☐

Detained

☐

Misdemeanor (#)
(Most serious charge)

Est.
☐

Total (#)

☐

Est.
☐
☐

D3. While awaiting case adjudication, how many defendants reported in D2 were released by the
following mechanisms:

Financial release (total)

Felony (#)
Misdemeanor (#)
(Most serious charge) Est. (Most serious charge) Est. Total (#) Est.
☐
☐
☐

Cash

☐

☐

☐

Deposit

☐

☐

☐

Surety

☐

☐

☐

Property

☐

☐

☐

☐

☐

☐

Citation

☐

☐

☐

Release on recognizance

☐

☐

☐

Unsecured bond

☐

☐

☐

Supervised release

☐

☐

☐

Non-financial release (total)

9

D R A F T [February 2014]
The Urban Institute
D4. While awaiting case adjudication, how many defendants reported in D2 were
Felony (#)
(Most serious charge)
…detained on financial bail?

Est.
☐

…detained without bail?

☐

Misdemeanor (#)
(Most serious charge)

Est.
☐

Total (#) Est.
☐

☐

☐

Now that you have answered questions D2-D4, the next couple of questions ask about the level of
effort in completing these questions.
D5. What is the total number of labor hours for all persons involved in answering items D2-D4?
___________
D6. What challenges, if any, did you experience when completing items D2-D4?
☐1. All items were completed without challenges.
☐2. Information is not collected.
☐3. Information is collected, but not accessible due to legal or administrative complications.
(please explain below)
☐4. Information is collected and accessible, but not easily extracted. (please explain below)
☐5. Information is available for reporting, but is too labor-intensive to provide.
☐6. Other (please explain below)
If you faced any challenges when completing these items, please explain further.

Now let’s continue with questions about pretrial processes. After a set of substantive questions, we
will repeat questions about the level of effort and challenges in completing those questions for the
remainder of this survey.
D7a. What was the average bail amount (in dollars) for released pretrial defendants in 2012?
______________
D7b. What was the average bail amount (in dollars) for pretrial defendants in 2012 who were not
released?
______________
D8. What is the total number of labor hours for all persons involved in answering items D7a-b?
_____________
10

D R A F T [February 2014]
The Urban Institute
D9. What challenges, if any, did you experience when completing items D7a-b?
☐1. All items were completed without challenges.
☐2. Information is not collected.
☐3. Information is collected, but not accessible due to legal or administrative complications.
(please explain below)
☐4. Information is collected and accessible, but not easily extracted. (please explain below)
☐5. Information is available for reporting, but is too labor-intensive to provide.
☐6. Other (please explain below)
If you faced any challenges when completing these items, please explain further.

11

D R A F T [February 2014]
The Urban Institute

SECTION E: PRETRIAL MISCONDUCT SECTION
For question E1
• If exact numbers are not available, please provide best estimates. Indicate that
you have provided an estimate by checking the “Est.” box.
• If you are not able to provide an estimate, please write “-99” in each box.
E1. How many of the defendant population released while awaiting case adjudication in 2012 – as
specified in item D2:
Count (#)
…failed to appear (FTA) in court?
…were arrested?
…violated the terms of supervision?

Est.
☐
☐
☐

E2. Through your data system, is it possible to track whether FTA cases are brought back into court?
☐Yes
☐No
E2. Through your data system, is it possible to identify whether those arrested were arrested for a
felony offense or a misdemeanor?
☐Yes
☐No
E4. What is the total number of labor hours for all persons involved in answering question E1?
____________
E5. What challenges, if any, did you experience when completing question E1?
☐1. All items were completed without challenges.
☐2. Information is not collected.
☐3. Information is collected, but not accessible due to legal or administrative complications.
(please explain below)
☐4. Information is collected and accessible, but not easily extracted. (please explain below)
☐5. Information is available for reporting, but is too labor-intensive to provide.
☐6. Other (please explain below)

12

D R A F T [February 2014]
The Urban Institute
If you faced any challenges when completing these items, please explain further.

SECTION F: PRETRIAL SUBPOPULATION BREAKDOWN
For question F1
• If exact numbers are not available, please provide best estimates. Indicate that
you have provided an estimate by checking the “Est.” box.
• If you are not able to provide an estimate, please write “-99” in each box.

F1. Please provide the number of detained defendants for the following subpopulations:
Count (#)

Race

Age

Gender

Offense Charged
(most serious)

Est.

Non-Hispanic, American Indian or Alaska Native

☐

Non-Hispanic, Asian

☐

Non-Hispanic, Black or African American

☐

Hispanic or Latino

☐

Non-Hispanic, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander

☐

Non-Hispanic, White

☐

More than one race

☐

17 or below

☐

18 - 24

☐

25 - 39

☐

40 - 54

☐

55 or above

☐

Male

☐

Female

☐

Violent Crime

☐

Property Crime

☐

Drug Crime

☐

Motor Vehicle/DUI

☐

Other

☐

13

D R A F T [February 2014]
The Urban Institute
F2. What is the total number of labor hours for all persons involved in answering item F1?
________________
F3. What challenges did you experience when completing item F1?
☐1. All items were completed without challenges.
☐2. Information is not collected.
☐3. Information is collected, but not accessible due to legal or administrative complications.
(please explain below)
☐4. Information is collected and accessible, but not easily extracted. (please explain below)
☐5. Information is available for reporting, but is too labor-intensive to provide.
☐6. Other (please explain below)
If you faced any challenges when completing these items, please explain further.

14

D R A F T [February 2014]
The Urban Institute
For questions F4 – F5
• If exact numbers are not available, please provide best estimates. Indicate that ou
have provided an estimate by checking the “Est.” box.
• If you are not able to provide an estimate, please write “-99” in each box.
F4. Please provide the number of defendants who failed to appear in court while released pretrial by
the following populations:
Count (#)

Race

Age

Gender

Offense
Charged
(most serious)

Release Type

Est.

Non-Hispanic, American Indian or Alaska Native

☐

Non-Hispanic, Asian

☐

Non-Hispanic, Black or African American

☐

Hispanic or Latino

☐

Non-Hispanic, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander

☐

Non-Hispanic, White

☐

More than one race

☐

17 or below

☐

18 - 24

☐

25 - 39

☐

40 - 54

☐

55 or above

☐

Male

☐

Female

☐

Violent Crime

☐

Property Crime

☐

Drug Crime

☐

Motor Vehicle/DUI

☐

Other

☐

Financial (e.g., cash, surety bond)

☐

Non-financial (e.g., supervised release, release on recognizance)

☐

15

D R A F T [February 2014]
The Urban Institute
F5. Please provide the number of defendants arrested for a new crime while released pretrial by the
following populations:
Count (#)
Non-Hispanic, American Indian or Alaska Native

☐

Non-Hispanic, Asian

☐

Non-Hispanic, Black or African American

☐

Hispanic or Latino

☐

Non-Hispanic, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander

☐

Non-Hispanic, White

☐

More than one race

☐

17 or below

☐

18 - 24

☐

25 - 39

☐

40 - 54

☐

55 or above

☐

Male

☐

Female

☐

Violent Crime

☐

Property Crime

☐

Drug Crime

☐

Motor Vehicle/DUI

☐

Other

☐

Financial (e.g., cash, surety bond)

☐

Non-financial (e.g., supervised release, release on recognizance)

☐

Race

Age

Gender

Offense
Charged
(most serious)

Release Type

Est.

F6. What is the total number of labor hours for all persons involved in answering items F4-F5?
________________

16

D R A F T [February 2014]
The Urban Institute
F7. What challenges did you experience when completing items F4-F5?
☐1. All items were completed without challenges.
☐2. Information is not collected.
☐3. Information is collected, but not accessible due to legal or administrative complications.
(please explain below)
☐4. Information is collected and accessible, but not easily extracted. (please explain below)
☐5. Information is available for reporting, but is too labor-intensive to provide.
☐6. Other (please explain below)
If you faced any challenges when completing these items, please explain further.

SECTION G: GENERAL COMMENTS
Please use the space below to add any comments or suggestions about how to make the gathering of
pretrial information easier and how to encourage participation among jurisdictions when the National
Pretrial Reporting Program (NPRP) is fielded in the future. Thank you for completing the survey!

17