By Vasiliki Georgoulas-Sherry & Hanna Hernandez

Data is needed to understand and assess the demographic differences—and at times, disparities and disproportionalities—in how the criminal justice system serves our communities and administers justice. Understanding these disparities and disproportionality in the criminal justice system is crucial for addressing systemic inequities. Disparities and disproportionalities within the criminal justice system are present in all stages of the criminal justice system, from arrest to incarceration (Brame et al., 2014; Kim & Kiesel, 2018; Kovera, 2019; Monk, 2019). This topic continues to draw significant attention from a variety of resources such as local, state, and federal government agencies, advocacy groups, policymakers and lawmakers, researchers and scholars, and the community. Evaluating these disparities and disproportionality is critical for addressing systemic inequalities and promoting fairness in the administration of justice. To respond to these impacts, the Criminal Justice Research & Statistics Center. the Washington Statistical Analysis Center (SAC) applied for and received the 2023 State Justice Statistics (SJS) grant from the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) to assess this work. Through the use of publicly available data from the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) to evaluate sex and racial disparities and disproportionalities, this report, which is part of a series of NIBRS reports, will endeavor to better understand more about the different demographic groups that are most impacted, and how these trends vary by time. Furthermore, this report will assess the demographic differences in the presence of injury, the presence of bias motivation, the use of weapons and/ or force, and the presence of familiarity in victimization in NIBRS crimes against property (i.e., criminal acts that destroy or deprive another's property against the owner's will - generally considered less serious than crimes against persons, but they can still be felonies).

Olympia: Washington State Statistical Analysis Center, 2024. 74p.

By Robin Joy and Megan Novak

It has been a long-time interest in both the victim advocate community and researchers to conduct a study to determine if individuals living in the rural areas of Vermont experience greater severity of injuries. Isolation in the rural areas creates a challenging barrier for a number of reasons: fewer people are around to witness behaviors, victims are removed from services, higher rates of substance abuse and unemployment, issues with transportation, and long distances to domestic violence and health-related services. According to the Vermont Domestic Violence Homicide Fatality Review Committee, at least half of Vermont’s homicides have been domestic violence-related almost every year since 1994 (Commission, 2020) (Vermont Fatality Review Commission, 2018). Research external to Vermont suggests that the rural nature of the state may be contributing to the homicide rate as well as to the level of injury sustained in intimate partner assaults. A study of services provided to victims in Illinois found that rural victims were more likely to experience sexual assault than urban victims. Logan et. al. (2003 & 2005), found that rural victims of domestic violence are likely to be abused earlier in a relationship and be abused more often than urban victims. Factors that contribute to more injurious intimate partner violence (IPV) in rural areas include isolation from other houses, few employment/housing opportunities, and distance from services and supports (Edwards, 2015). These issues are present in the rural state of Vermont with a longstanding affordable housing crisis, lack of accessible public transportation and services outside of larger population centers, and limited hospital options. Working with stakeholders, this study was designed to understand the impact that Vermont’s rural nature may have on the severity of domestic violence in Vermont. The primary research question proposed for this project was: Do victims of domestic violence in the rural areas of Vermont experience more serious injuries than victims in urban and suburban areas? Breaking this down the project proposed to answer: • Do intimate partner assaults result in more serious injuries in areas where there is no local police coverage versus those areas that have a local police force?

Do Emergency Department visits coded with IDC codes for Domestic Violence1 indicate that there is a difference in the severity of injuries of patients from rural areas versus urban areas? • What distance barriers are present for victims of intimate partner violence in accessing services such as shelter, counseling, and economic services? This study uses various data sources to categorize the injuries sustained by victims by their location and evaluates the data sources available to measure the prevalence of serious injuries in rural areas. Part 1 maps out the resources available to domestic violence victims. Part 2 analyzes the National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS) data to understand crimes of IPV reported to the police. Part 3 analyzes emergency room discharge data for domestic violence cases. 

Montepilier, VT: Crime Research Group, 2021. 19p.   

By Monica Wheeler and Robin Joy

This memo explores drug charge filings and dispositions in the Vermont Superior Court, Criminal Division from 2018 through November 2023. Summary • Heroin filings are down from their pre-pandemic levels. • Cocaine filings and dispositions are rising back to their pre-pandemic levels. • The most common crimes associated with drug charges are public order offenses. • Property crimes are not often associated with drug charges. • Cocaine is the most common drug charged with fentanyl cases, heroin cases, and the catchall depressant/stimulant/narcotic cases.

Montpelier, VT: Crime Research Group, 2024. 18p.

By Monica Weeber and Robin Joy

Summary • The 2023 retail theft charge filings are consistent with pre-COVID years. There is an increase in the number of felony retail theft charges filed. • Most felony retail theft charges are disposed as a felony. • Case backlogs can occur at all stages of the process, including apprehension, scheduling, and disposition. • 57.6% of repeat retail theft offenders re-offend with a new retail theft offense within 30 days of their first offense. • Restitution is ordered in approximately 8% of all retail theft cases.
 

• Straight sentences were the most common sentence for both misdemeanor and felony retail theft. The average minimum time for misdemeanor retail theft was .03 years (11 days) and for felony was .64 years (7.6 months).

Montpelier VT: Crime Research Group, 2024.   12p.

By Megan Novak

Vermont’s victim service providers, law enforcement, and legislature have been interested in understanding state trends related to sex and labor trafficking. In this regard, Crime Research Group reviewed Vermont human trafficking data recorded in the National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS). NIBRS was created to capture details on specific crime incidents including information about victims, known offenders, victim-offender relationships, arrestees, and property involved. Since the 1990s, Vermont law enforcement have been NIBRS compliant meaning that information concerning certain crimes known to Vermont law enforcement are logged in NIBRS. This report reviews available NIBRS data reported between 2015-2019. A preliminary review indicated that there were no labor or sex trafficking cases recorded in 2015. Furthermore, between 2016-2019, there were no recorded incidents involving labor trafficking offenses. Therefore, this report focuses on sex trafficking offenses that occurred between 2016-2019 in Vermont. Annual review of NIBRS sex trafficking data will help identify trends and monitor data quality. Trends to be monitored include, but are not limited to, total number of incidents and offenses, offense circumstances (e.g., substances involved, weapons used), as well as victim and offender demographics.

Montpelier, VT: Crime Research Group, 2021. 7p.

By Megan Novak

Property offenses refer to crimes in which the object is “to obtain money, property, or some other benefit” (NIBRS User Manual, p. 9).1 Between 2015 and 2019, property offenses accounted for 70.88% of all crimes committed in Vermont. Given the prevalence of property offenses, criminal justice stakeholders and legislatures have a vested interest in monitoring trends related to these types of crime. The National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS) is a data source in which law enforcement record information about 26 property offenses. Annual reports will monitor Vermont’s NIBRS data for trends related to the number of incidents each year, types and number of offenses committed, victim and offender demographics, and arrestee information. 

Montpelier, VT: Crime Research Group, 2021. 13p.

By Christopher C. Louras 

As part of Crime Research Group’s (CRG) stakeholder engagement process associated with the National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS) data-driven Vermont Crime Analysis project, CRG’s law enforcement partners asked: “How do our agencies spend our time? And to what offenses do we respond?” This report seeks to use NIBRS data to help Vermont’s state, county, and municipal policing agencies answer those questions. This report will delve into the most common reported offenses within the state and the individual counties, which law enforcement agencies respond to the reported crimes, and the distribution of the offenses in individual counties. Given that most of Vermont is comprised of rural areas, an aggregate view of the data on offenses committed in the state might be skewed by more urbanized areas like Burlington. As such, this report will examine the top five offenses reported in each county and will include a list of the top ten crimes. A county-level examination can help inform how law enforcement agencies and policymakers develop strategies to address each jurisdiction’s particular needs. This report by no means describes all the incidents to which law enforcement responds. NIBRS data captures crimes while quality of life incidents such as noise complaints, issues with animals, and suspicious activity, etc., are not captured in NIBRS data. Once Vermont law enforcement are all using the new computer aided dispatch/records management system (CAD/RMS), the quality-of-life incidents will be available for a more comprehensive review as to how law enforcement spends their time.

Montpelier, VT: Crime Research Group, 2021. 33p.

Within the state of Vermont, there is a history of following a traditional approach of relying on transaction- based information systems for data capture and reporting. This model relies on disparate silos of data and functionality, resulting in numerous problems ranging from the inability to access the right data to lengthy delays in obtaining much needed data for analysis and decision making. This perpetuates inefficiencies and compromises the effectiveness of criminal justice practitioners as they try to navigate these systems. Obtaining relevant data in Vermont can also be challenging due to a lack of information-sharing or the inability to share data. Not only are there challenges in identifying data but there are also nuances in data fields that make it difficult and, in some cases, harmful to draw conclusions from the data. For example, it is harmful to assume that a defendant intended to avoid justice in the case of failure to appear, when in actuality the defendant incarcerated at the time of the hearing. The Data Integration Planning Process The National Criminal Justice Reform Project (NCJRP) helped focus the process on strategic planning that furthered the integration of data systems and the use of measurable, high fidelity evidence-based programs. The long-term vision of this effort has been to develop a data system that allows data sharing and the integration of disparate information technology systems between and among all partners across the criminal justice system in the state. Such a system would provide practitioners at all levels with a comprehensive set of query and analytics tools for improved decision making. Foundational to this work is the need for access to integrated data from criminal justice and human services. Access to integrated data is critical for the decision-making processes and for measuring the results being achieved. Currently the data systems are siloed with some data flowing through one system to the next. (See AttachmentA) Technology is needed that is scalable to all systems within the Vermont criminal justice system, allowing for the comprehensive collection and assessment of data across the criminal justice processes. Through the NCJRP, the Advisory Committee recognized the importance of including data from other agencies beyond that of law enforcement, including courts and corrections. They identified the need to engage stakeholders, conduct a thorough technology and systems assessment, develop a comprehensive strategic plan, and establish a governance structure and staffing to oversee this work. The long-term vision is to have a single point of reference for the integration of all criminal justice data in Vermont. A system is needed that provides query capabilities, as well as system integration services, allowing for the use of a single, open-source standards-based data portal to facilitate state-wide justice information sharing. The next steps called for bringing the criminal justice community together to develop a strategy that looked beyond the NCJRP. To do this, the NCJRP technical assistance team engaged SEARCH, the premiere justice sharing organization, to help with operationalizing the vision. To help convey the complexity and number of software systems involved in the various functions and roles of the stakeholders expecting to be integrated, Attachment B exists as a flowchart representation overlayed with the software engaged at each phase of the process. Three objectives were identified: 1. To develop and deliver a data infrastructure implementation plan and framework for strengthening governance and multi-agency information sharing among criminal justice and other stakeholders with an initial focus on racial disparities. 2. To establish a process to routinely communicate stakeholder technology plans, changes to information sharing needs, policies and practices, and capabilities and gaps. These activities will promote coordination and integration solutions that collectively enhance strategic policy and operational decision making among justice partners within the state. 3. To establish a consensus among partners to define the relevance, need, purpose, participating agencies, objectives, and responsibilities of the governance structure. Identify leadership, support, and resources to effectively manage progress toward the defined objectives. In 2019, the Vermont Department of Public Safety (DPS), as outlined in their Modernization Plan, was in the process of implementing a new computer-aided dispatch and records management system (CAD/RMS) for all law enforcement agencies within the state. This would allow more data to be collected and stored at DPS and help ensure the data is collected effectively and integrated with other systems within the criminal justice system. To further the data integration work, the Vermont NCJRP team proposed utilizing the funds initially allocated for personnel to support a position within the Agency of Digital Services (ADS). Scheduling meetings, agenda/minutes preparation and distribution, managing deliverables, and participating in committee meetings all takes time and effort – resources which most stakeholders had very little to spare. The support and management function of this initiative was a key component to maintain the project’s initial momentum and continue making progress toward the objectives. 

Montpelier, VT: Crime Research Group, 2022. 27p.