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Government data is only as good as it is complete. In December 2021, an article<\/a><\/strong> in The W<\/em>ashington Post<\/em> discussed how the FBI\u2019s National Use-of-Force Data Collection<\/a><\/strong> database, begun in 2019, still suffers from a lack of data input from police departments across the U.S. This is considered so much of a problem that the FBI is thinking of shutting down the program. In an era of a great deal of interest and concern about policing, especially after the murder of George Floyd, how can the FBI even consider giving up? Is there really no way to require key data on such an important topic?<\/p>\n THE FAILURE OF THE NATIONAL USE-OF-FORCE DATA COLLECTION <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n The International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) shared information<\/a> <\/strong>about the National Use-of-Force Data Collection, stating that the FBI\u2019s intention was to \u201cfoster more informed conversations around use-of-force incidents and demonstrate law enforcement\u2019s commitment to transparency, fair and impartial policing, and community trust.\u201d From the start, the data collection for the database was limited. The IACP notes that not all uses of force can be reported to the database. The cases in which police use of force is reportable are when that use of force causes:<\/p>\n A recent headline in The<\/em> Washington Post <\/em>states<\/a><\/strong>, \u201cFor a second year, most U.S. police departments decline to share information on their use of force\u201d with the National Use-of-Force Data Collection. In 2021, when that article was published, the participation rate was \u201conly 27 percent of local and federal agencies.\u201d According to a Government Accountability Office report<\/a><\/strong> from December 2021, \u201cDue to insufficient participation from law enforcement agencies, the FBI faces risks that it may not meet the participation thresholds established [by the Office of Management and Budget] and therefore may never publish use-of-force incident data from the collection.\u201d<\/p>\n ADDRESSING THE CRITICAL NEED FOR USE-OF-FORCE DATA<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n A 2022 assessment<\/a><\/strong> from Everytown Research & Policy reports that \u201c10 best-in-class state policies require state law enforcement agencies to collect data on all incidents in which officers use force against civilians and to report that data to the state\u2014which must then publicly release state-wide and agency-specific data. Other states have policies on this topic that are incomplete, either requiring collection without reporting or publication or only requiring agencies to collect data on \u2018serious\u2019 or lethal force.\u201d<\/p>\n A May 2021 article<\/a><\/strong> in Telematics and Informatics<\/em> notes, \u201cThe commitment to open data is not uniform across local governments,\u201d and in the area of police use of force, this is a clear understatement. Research<\/a><\/strong> from University of Chicago Law School, published in 2021, states, \u201cTransparency is necessary to allow the public to evaluate how well existing policies and systems are working. Data and information provided by governments on law enforcement use of force is extremely scarce in most, if not all, jurisdictions. Few police departments are required to publish data on the use of force.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s not just a problem in the U.S. In a January 2022 article in the Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice<\/em><\/a><\/strong>, researchers urged their government to create a national use-of-force database to \u201cenhance police transparency and accountability, while also increasing our understanding of when and why force is used and what strategies may be useful for reducing inappropriate applications of force.\u201d They note, \u201cConcerns surrounding the use of force by police officers appear to be growing, fuelled by perceptions that the police use force too frequently.\u201d Research shows \u201cthat force is applied disproportionately to members of certain groups, and the view [is] held by some that the mechanisms for holding police responsible for unjustified force are inadequate.\u201d The challenges of this proposal include \u201cmandating nationwide participation, overcoming resistance from the police community, establishing sensible case inclusion criteria, and standardizing data collection. While these are significant challenges, [the authors] believe not only that they are possible to overcome but that doing so will provide real value to Canadian society.\u201d<\/p>\n PAST EFFORTS TO MEASURE POLICE USE OF FORCE IN THE U.S.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n The Police Public Contact Survey<\/a><\/strong>, done periodically from 1996 to 2018 and currently collecting data for 2022, claims<\/a><\/strong> to be \u201cthe only national collection on police contact from the perspective of residents; the only national data collection that measures the full scope of nonlethal force used by police; the only national data collection that collects measures of police legitimacy; the only national data collection that can be used to assess racial disparities in contact with police and outcomes of contact with police; and the only data collection that can provide national estimates of the rate of searches during traffic stops and the prevalence of stop and frisk practices.\u201d<\/p>\n The<\/em> Washington Post<\/em> maintains an independent Fatal Force<\/a><\/strong> database that attempts to fill the gap. Its data finds that 7,291 individuals have been shot and killed by on-duty police officers since Jan. 1, 2015. The database tracks details about each death\u2014the victim\u2019s race, the circumstances of the shooting, whether the victim was armed, and whether the victim was experiencing a mental health crisis\u2014drawing on other databases such as Mapping Police Violence<\/a><\/strong> and Fatal Encounters<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n GETTING BETTER DATA ON POLICE USE OF FORCE IS CRITICAL<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe police are widely recognized as both a key input into public safety \u2026 and a potential driver or mitigant of social inequality at a population level \u2026, with significant implications for the wellbeing of individuals and communities,\u201d according to<\/a><\/strong> a December 2021 research paper. \u00a0\u201cPerhaps the most distinguishing feature of police in society, however, is their authority to use physical force, even injurious or lethal force, against civilians.\u201d Better documentation and availability of data are necessary if we are ever going to solve this problem.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n