Coursework Example: The Uniform Crime Reports

In essence, crime is no longer a new phenomenon in the United States, a trend that existed since the time of colonization. Apparently, there has been a declining rate of offense in the contemporary society thanks to various factors such as penitentiary facility, increase in overall police enforcement as well as higher per capita income across the American. Primarily, efficiency in policies designed to fight crime has been measured using the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) and the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program. Notably, both of these bodies are used to measure the nature, impact, and magnitude of crime in the USA.

The UCR Program was initiated in 1929 by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Apparently, Its role is to collect relevant information regarding 21 crime categories among them being robbery, burglary, arson, manslaughter, murder, and forcible rape(Siegel, 2016). The program compiles data collected from law enforcement reports, which are released on a monthly basis. Comparisons are often made between reports of various law enforcement authorities aimed at identifying trends or fluctuations in crime counts.

Primarily, the program gives crime counts per states, counties, colleges, tribal law enforcement and for the nation as well. In essence, this information helps in identifying specific areas in which crime rates are rising thus helping in structuring relevant policies to deal with such issues (Lynch, 2014). Additionally, UCR program assesses crime prevalence by summing up the major crimes reported to the police who hand in this intelligence to the FBI.

The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) is a survey unit that conducts Census Bureau of Justice. Essentially, the program was started in 1973, aimed at conducting surveys twice a year. Notably, these involve interviewing a sample of about 43,000 USA households which sums up to around 76,000 respondents. Information is therefore collected regardless of whether the crime is reported or not.

The survey aims at collecting information on the offenders, victims, and the nature of crimes experienced. Additionally, the survey seeks to find out peoples experience especially those with experience in the criminal justice system, the methods of self-protection used by victims of crime as well as the extent of drug and substance abuse by the offenders (Siegel, 2016). This survey, however, cannot break down the data collected by locality as it involves a national survey. Crime rates are therefore scrutinized by dividing the number of offenses by the population size (Lynch, 2014).

Another body which is crucial to this functioning is the National Incident-Based Reporting System which is set to capture the details of each crime incident (Siegel, 2016). The system provides in-depth data as it gives the context of each crime and goes father to indicate all offenses that were committed in one incident. Additionally, such system has provided an effective tool for quantifying crime (Lynch, 2014). Moreover, it provides relevant information in policy formulation regarding administration, management, and operation in law enforcement.

In conclusion, it is evident that the UCR and the NCVS are all crucial in ensuring crime prevention in the United States. Through these programs, the public can assess a report that informs them on the state regarding security as well as crime. The reports are often viewed as one of the ways through which law enforcers show accountability for public safety. The reports provide crucial information in planning and allocation of resources in crime prevention. They are also a substantive tool in formulating relevant strategies in elevating crime.

References

Lynch, James (2014) Understanding crime statistics, New York: Cambridge University Press

Siegel, Larry (2016) Essentials of criminal justice, Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning