[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 35 (Friday, February 21, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8525-8526]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-4202]


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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

Office of Justice Programs


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; 
Comments Requested

ACTION: 30-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 (OJP) 
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. This proposed information collection was 
previously published in the Federal Register Volume 67, Number 219, 
page 68887 on November 13, 2002, allowing for a 60-day comment period.
    The purpose of this notice is to allow for an additional 30 days 
for public comment until March 21, 2003. This process is conducted in 
accordance with 5 CFR 1320.10.
    Written comments and/or suggestions regarding the items contained 
in this notice, especially the estimated public burden and associated 
response time, should be directed to The Office of Management and 
Budget, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Attention 
Department of Justice Desk Officer, Washington, DC 20503. Additionally, 
comments may be submitted to OMB via facsimile to (202) 395-7285.
    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

[[Page 8526]]

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 as 
annual collection (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 ranged 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: 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: Mrs. Brenda E. Dyer, 
Deputy Clearance Officer, United States Department of Justice, 
Information Management and Security Staff, Justice Management Division, 
Suite 1600, Patrick Henry Building, 601 D Street NW., Washington, DC 
20530.

    Dated: February 14, 2003.
Brenda E. Dyer,
Department Deputy Clearance Officer, United States Department of 
Justice.
[FR Doc. 03-4202 Filed 2-20-03; 8:45 am]
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