"Data Accuracy the Next Frontier in Criminal Justice"

The title of this post is the headline of this intriguing piece from The Legal Intelligencer. Here is how the piece gets started:

The job of leaders in the criminal court system is to carry out justice, and accurate information is an essential part of fulfilling that responsibility.

At one time it was revolutionary just to use computer record-keeping systems instead of paper files in criminal justice.  Now, the next information technology frontier is making sure the data collected by one criminal justice agency is accurate, comprehensive, and can be used by other criminal justice agencies in formulating public policy.

Although a lot of resources have been invested in the hardware used by Pennsylvania criminal justice agencies, "we always come back to the same discussion," said Rita D. Reynolds, director of technology services and telecommunications for the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania (CCAP).  "The data needs to be quality, it needs to be consistent ... for policy, also for safety and for notification" of victims.