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National Criminal Justice Reference Service

The National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS) is funded by NIJ and other Federal agencies to provide justice and substance abuse information to support research, policy, and program development worldwide. The following NCJRS services and resources are available to anyone interested in crime, victim assistance, and public safety including policymakers, practitioners, researchers, educators, community leaders, and the general public.

Ask Questions, Find Answers

NCJRS offers extensive reference and referral services to help you find answers to your questions about crime and justice-related research, policy, and practice. Search Questions & Answers to access hundreds of questions related to juvenile and criminal justice, victim assistance, drug policy, and NCJRS services.

Join the Information Network

Stay informed about new publications, grants and funding opportunities, and other news and announcements. Register online and you will receive:

  • JUSTINFO: a bi-weekly electronic newsletter that includes links to full text publications, notices of upcoming trainings and conferences, funding announcements, and other resources.
  • E-mail notifications: periodic messages about new publications and resources that match your specific areas of interests.
  • Publications: periodic mailings of publications that match your interests.
  • The Justice Resource Update: a quarterly publication that highlights NCJRS Partner Agency announcements.
  • Listserv invitations: receive invitations to subscribe to other topical listservs based on your interest areas.

Join the Criminal Justice Editors' Group (CJEG)! CJEG is a network of more than 100 editors of national, State, and local periodicals, sharing information from the NCJRS sponsoring agencies and network members on a regular basis. Editors then share these resources with their respective readerships. NCJRS also provides artwork for announcements, articles on specific topics, and NCJRS products and services. For more information on joining CJEG, please e-mail NCJRS.

Use your expertise to ensure that NCJRS products and services meet the needs of the field! The Consumer Advisory Network (CAN) is a group of members that assist NCJRS and the Sponsoring Agencies in assessing and enhancing products and services to ensure that their content, format, and accessibility meet the needs of the field. The Network is made up of 10 to 20 representatives in the criminal justice field who serve for two years and participate in two annual conference calls and other activities. For more information, please e-mail NCJRS.

Access, Read, and Request Publications and Other Products

The NCJRS sponsoring agencies publish hundreds of reports and other information products each year to share with you and your colleagues. The types of reports and their content are designed to meet the broad range of interests in the field and the audiences who use them. Most of the titles are available online through the NCJRS Web site, see Publications/Products to view online or place an online order for a paper copy by clicking Order Photocopy or Order next to the product.

Learn From the Experiences of Others

NCJRS hosts one of the largest criminal and juvenile justice libraries and databases in the world, the NCJRS Abstracts Database. The collection, with holdings from the early 1970s to the present, contains more than 185,000 publications, reports, articles, and audiovisual products from the United States and around the world. These resources include statistics, research findings, program descriptions, congressional hearing transcripts, and training materials.

The abstracts include the title, author, sponsoring agency, purchasing address, and journal citation, as well as a 100- to 200-word summary of the document's contents. Keyword and index term searches of the database are easy. With the search capabilities offered, you can quickly retrieve all the citations relevant to your question or area of interest.

Attend, Promote, and Support Conferences

Learn about upcoming conferences through the Justice Events section of the NCJRS site. Search for conferences based on respective focus areas, geographical location, or dates. Increase exposure and participation at your upcoming conferences by adding your event to the calendar.

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