[Federal Register: November 13, 2002 (Volume 67, Number 219)]
[Notices]
[Page 68887-68888]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr13no02-112]
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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Office of Justice Programs
Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection;
Comments Requested
ACTION: 60-day notice of information collection under review: revision
of a currently approved collection. Deaths in Custody--series of
collections from local jails, State prisons, juvenile and law
enforcement detention centers.
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The Department of Justice (DOJ), Office of Justice Programs, has
submitted the following information collection request to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with
the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. The proposed information
collection is published to obtain comments from the public and affected
agencies. Comments are encouraged and will be accepted for 60 days
until January 13, 2002. This process is conducted in accordance with 5
CFR 1320.10.
If you have comments especially on the estimated public burden or
associated response time, suggestions, or need a copy of the proposed
information collection instrument with instructions or additional
information, please contact, Lawrence A. Greenfeld, Director, Bureau of
Justice Statistics, 810 Seventh St. NW., Washington, DC 20531.
Request written comments and suggestions from the public and
affected agencies concerning the proposed collection of information are
encouraged. Your comments should address one or more of the following
four points:
(1) Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency,
including whether the information will have practical utility;
(2) Evaluate the accuracy of the agencies estimate of the burden of
the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used;
(3) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to
be collected; and
(4) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those
who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated,
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic
submission of responses.
Overview of this information collection:
(1) Type of Information Collection: Revision of a currently
approved collection
(2) Title of the Form/Collection: Deaths In Custody--Series of
Collections from Local Jails, State Prisons, Juvenile and Law
Enforcement Detention Centers. The series includes the forms: Quarterly
Summary of Inmate Deaths in State Prison; State Prison Inmate Death
Report; Quarterly Summary of Deaths in State Juvenile Residential
Facilities; State Juvenile Residential Death Report; Quarterly Report
on Inmates Under Jail Jurisdiction; Annual Summary on Inmates Under
Jail Jurisdiction; Quarterly Report on Inmates in Private and Multi-
Jurisdiction Jails; Annual Summary on Inmates in Private and Multi-
Jurisdictional Jails; Quarterly Summary of Deaths in Law Enforcement
Custody; and Law Enforcement Custodial Death Report.
(3) Agency form number, if any, and the applicable component of the
Department of Justice sponsoring the collection: Form Number(s): NPS-4,
NPS-4A, NPS-5, NPS-5A, CJ-9, CJ-9A, CJ-10, CJ-10A, CJ-11 and CJ-11A.
Corrections Statistics Unit, Bureau of Justice Statistics, Office of
Justice Programs, United States Department of Justice.
(4) Affected public who will be asked or required to respond, as
well as a brief abstract: Primary: Local jail administrators, (one
reporter from each of the 3,083 local jail jurisdictions in the United
States), State prison administrators (one reporter from each of the 50
States and the District of Columbia), and State juvenile correctional
administrators (one reporter from each of the 50 States and the
District of Columbia) responsible for keeping records on inmates will
be asked to provide information for the following categories: (a)
During each reporting quarter, the number of deaths of persons in their
custody; and (b) As of January 1 and December 31 of each reporting
year, the number of mail and female inmates in their custody (local
jails only); and (c) Between January 1 and December 31 of each
reporting year, the number of male and female inmates admitted to their
custody (local jails only); and (d) The name, date of birth, gender,
race/ethnic origin, and date of death for each inmate who died in their
custody during each reporting quarter; and (e) The admission date,
legal status, and current offenses for each inmate who died in their
custody during the reporting quarter; and (f) Whether or not an autopsy
was conducted by a medical examiner or coroner to determine the cause
of each inmate death that took place in their custody during the
reporting quarter; and (g) The location and cause of each inmate death
that took place in their custody during the reporting quarter; and (h)
In cases where the cause of death was illness/natural causes (including
AIDS), whether or not the cause of each inmate death was the result of
a pre-existing medical condition, and whether or not the inmate had
been receiving treatment for that medical condition; and (i) In cases
where the cause of death was accidental injury, suicide, or homicide,
when and where the incident causing the inmate's death took place.
As part of the conference agreement for FY2000 appropriations, the
Bureau of Justice Statistics was directed by the U.S. Congress ``to
implement a voluntary annual reporting system of all deaths occurring
in law enforcement custody.'' BJS received OMB approval to conduct such
an annual collection
[[Page 68888]]
(OMB No. 1121-0249). In the time since submitting that collection for
OMB approval, the President signed The Deaths in Custody Act of 2000
into law (Pub. L. 106-297). To comply with Pub. L. 106-297's new
requirement for a quarterly collection of inmate death data from local
jails, State prisons, and juvenile facilities, OMB granted BJS an
expanded clearance under the existing number (OMB No. 1121-0249) for
the following series of forms: NPS-4, NPS-4A, NPS-5, NPS-5A, CJ-9, CJ-
9A, CJ-10, and CJ-10A.
When this expanded OMB Clearance No. 1121-0249 was granted in
September 2001, BJS had not yet developed a data collection strategy
for measuring deaths in law enforcement custody ``in the process of
arrest'', as required by Pub. L. 106-297. At this time, BJS proposes a
data collection program to measure these law enforcement deaths which
utilizes State-level central reporters (one reporter from each of the
50 States and the District of Columbia) from each State's criminal
justice Statistical Analysis Center (SAC) to provide information for
the following categories: (a) During each reporting quarter, the number
of deaths of persons in the custody of State and local law enforcement
during the process of arrest; (b) The deceased's name, date of birth,
gender, race/Hispanic origin, and legal status at time of death; (c)
The date and location of death, the manner and medical cause of death,
and whether an autopsy was performed; (d) The law enforcement agency
involved, and the offenses for which the inmate was being charged; (e)
In cases of death prior to booking, whether death was the result of a
pre-existing medical condition or injuries sustained at the crime or
arrest scene, and whether the officer(s) involved used any weapons to
cause the death; (f) In cases of death prior to booking, whether the
deceased was under restraint in the time leading up to the death, and
whether their behavior at the arrest scene included threats or the use
of any force against the arresting officers; (g) In cases of death
after booking, the time and date of the deceased's entry into the law
enforcement booking facility where the death occurred, and the medical
and mental condition of the deceased at the time of entry; and (h) In
cases of accidental, homicide or suicide deaths after booking) who and
what were the means of death (e.g., suicide by means of hanging).
In States where the SAC cannot perform this function, a statewide
central reporter will be selected from among the following: the State
Attorney General's office, the State police, the State Medical
Examiner's Office, and the State respondent to the Federal Bureau of
Investigation's Uniform Crime Reporting program. This collection will
supplement the existing quarterly data collections on State prison,
local jail and juvenile correctional facility inmate deaths which the
Bureau of Justice Statistics has already begun in order to implement
Pub. L. 106-297. The Bureau of Justice Statistics will use this new
information to publish an annual report on deaths in custody. The
report will be made available to the U.S. Congress, Executive Officer
of the President, practitioners, researchers, students, the media, and
others interested in criminal justice statistics and data.
(5) An estimate of the total number of respondents and the amount
of time estimated for an average respondent to respond: There are an
estimated 3,236 respondents associated with this collection. The
estimated average time to respond per form is listed below.
Quarterly Summary of Inmate Deaths in State Prisons (NPS-4)/quarterly--
51 respondents (average response time = 5 minutes)
State Prison Inmate Death Report (NPS-4A)/quarterly--51 respondents
(average response time = 30 minutes per reported death)
Quarterly Summary of Deaths in State Juvenile Residential Facilities
(NPS-5)/quarterly--51 respondents (average response time = 5 minutes)
State Juvenile Residential Death Report (NPS-5A)/quarterly--51
respondents (average response time = 30 minutes per reported death)
Quarterly Report on Inmate Deaths Under Jail Jurisdiction (CJ-9)/
quarterly--2,989 respondents (average response time = 5 minutes + 30
minutes per reported death)
Annual Summary on Inmates Under Jail Jurisdiction (CJ-9A)/annual--2,989
respondents (average response time = 15 minutes)
Quarterly Report on Inmate Deaths in Private and Multi-Jurisdiction
Jails (CJ-10)/quarterly--94 respondents (average response time = 5
minutes + 30 minutes per reported death)
Annual Summary on Inmates in Private and Multi-Jurisdiction Jails (CJ-
10A)/annual--94 respondents (average response time = 15 minutes)
Quarterly Summary of Deaths in Law Enforcement Custody (CJ-11)/
quarterly--51 respondents (average response time = 5 minutes)
Law Enforcement Custodial Death Report (CJ-11A)/quarterly--51
respondents (average response time = 60 minutes per reported death).
(6) An estimate of the total public burden (in hours) associated
with the collection: There are an estimated 4,319 burden hours annually
associated with this information collection.
If additional information is required contact: Brenda E. Dyer,
Department Deputy Clearance Officer, Information Management and
Security Staff, Justice Management Division, Department of Justice,
Patrick Henry Building, Suite 1600, 601 D Street NW., Washington, DC
20530.
Dated: November 5, 2002.
Brenda E. Dyer,
Department Deputy Clearance Officer, Department of Justice.
[FR Doc. 02-28738 Filed 11-12-02; 8:45 am]
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