GPS RESEARCH LIBRARY: What BJA has published about Georgia's Death in Custody Reporting Act data ============================================================ Georgia Prisoners' Speak — gps.press Generated: 2026-11-13 14:36:07 EST Research Date: 2026-11-11 Topic: Deaths in custody JSON: https://gps.press/research-data/what-bja-has-published-about-georgias-death-in-custody-reporting-act-data/?format=json SUMMARY ---------------------------------------- What the Bureau of Justice Assistance has published about Georgia's reporting under the Death in Custody Reporting Act. METHODOLOGY NOTES (9) ---------------------------------------- - [confirmed] BJA DCRA reported-data page last modified December 4, 2025 The BJA DCRA reported-data page carries a 'Date Modified: December 4, 2025' and 'Date Created: November 15, 2024'. Date: 2025-12-04 Tags: investigations,policy Sources: BJA DCRA Reported Data - [confirmed] BJA DCRA published data cover FY2020–FY2024 as of May 2025 BJA's DCRA reported-data page states the published data represent FY 2020 through FY 2024 records submitted to BJA by states, territories, and DC, as of May 2025. Tags: investigations,policy Sources: BJA DCRA Reported Data - [confirmed] BJA DCRA page offers five interactive Tableau tables/figures The BJA DCRA reported-data page offers five interactive Tableau tables/figures: Deaths by Location Type & Fiscal Year (Fig.1), Manner of Death by Fiscal Year (Fig.2), a Demographics Dashboard (Fig.3), a Deaths in Custody State Map (Fig.4), and DCRA Decedents by State (Fig.5). Date: 2025-01-01 Tags: investigations,policy Sources: BJA DCRA Reported Data - [confirmed] BJA DCRA tables mask low counts and exclude juvenile facility deaths BJA's DCRA reported-data page notes that grand totals in its tables may not match due to masking of low counts for confidentiality, and that deaths in juvenile facilities were removed prior to table creation. Date: 2025-01-01 Tags: policy,investigations Sources: BJA DCRA Reported Data - [confirmed] BJA 'DCRA Decedents by State' figure is client-side Tableau embed BJA's DCRA reported-data page renders its 'DCRA Decedents by State' figure as an empty container div populated client-side via a Tableau embedding JavaScript API loaded from charts.ojp.usdoj.gov, rather than as static HTML text. Date: 2025-01-01 Tags: investigations,policy Sources: BJA DCRA Reported Data - [confirmed] CRS R47559 dated May 17, 2023, authored by Nathan James CRS Report R47559, 'Death in Custody Reporting Act: Background and Legislative Considerations,' is dated May 17, 2023, authored by Nathan James. Date: 2023-05-17 Tags: legal,policy Sources: Death in Custody Reporting Act: Background and Legislative Considerations - EveryCRSReport.com - [confirmed] DOJ report to Congress authored by Grant Duwe, December 2022 CRS R47559 cites the DOJ report to Congress as: Grant Duwe, 'Literature Review and Data Analysis on Deaths In Custody: Report to Congress,' DOJ, OJP, National Institute of Justice, Washington, DC, dated December 2022. Date: 2022-12-01 Tags: legal,policy,death Sources: Death in Custody Reporting Act: Background and Legislative Considerations - EveryCRSReport.com - [reported] EveryCRSReport mirror labels R47559 'VERSION 1' (NEW) The EveryCRSReport.com mirror of R47559 is labeled 'VERSION 1' (marked 'NEW'), indicating this is the first and, per that mirror, only published version of the report. Date: 2023-01-01 Tags: legal,policy Sources: Death in Custody Reporting Act: Background and Legislative Considerations - EveryCRSReport.com - [confirmed] BJA DCRA Overview page created May 6, 2022; modified November 15, 2024 The BJA DCRA program Overview page carries a 'Date Created: May 6, 2022' and was last 'Date Modified: November 15, 2024'. Tags: policy,investigations Sources: Death in Custody Reporting Act (DCRA) Data Collection | Overview | Bureau of Justice Assistance POLICYS (7) ---------------------------------------- - [confirmed] BJA disclaims completeness or accuracy of state-reported DCRA data BJA's DCRA reported-data page carries a disclaimer that the tables reflect state-reported information only, with no representation of completeness or accuracy by BJA, OJP, or DOJ. Date: 2025-01-01 Tags: policy,investigations Sources: BJA DCRA Reported Data - [confirmed] BJA DCRA data published under 'State Reported Deaths in Custody Interactive Tables' BJA publishes DCRA data at bja.ojp.gov/program/dcra/reported-data under the heading 'State Reported Deaths in Custody Interactive Tables'. Date: 2025-01-01 Tags: policy,investigations Sources: BJA DCRA Reported Data - [confirmed] BJA DCRA 'Suicide' manner-of-death definition BJA's DCRA reported-data page defines 'Suicide' as one of the manner-of-death categories used in its tables: 'A death resulting from the intentional act of an individual to end their own life, typically through methods such as hanging, overdose, or self-inflicted injury.' Date: 2025-01-01 Tags: death,mental_health,policy Sources: BJA DCRA Reported Data - [confirmed] BJS DCRP/MCI program collected state prison and jail death data under DCRA 2000 CRS R47559 states BJS collected data on people who died in state prisons and local jails through the Death in Custody Reporting Program (DCRP), later known as the Mortality in Correctional Institutions (MCI) program, in response to DCRA 2000. Date: 2000-01-01 Tags: policy,death,legal Sources: Death in Custody Reporting Act: Background and Legislative Considerations - EveryCRSReport.com - [confirmed] OJP began transferring DCRA collection from BJS to BJA in August 2016 CRS R47559's timeline states that in 2016, OJP began the process of transferring DCRA data collection responsibility from BJS to BJA. Date: 2016-01-01 Tags: policy,legal Sources: Death in Custody Reporting Act: Background and Legislative Considerations - EveryCRSReport.com - [confirmed] BJS began publishing federal custody death reports December 2020 GAO testimony states BJS began publishing reports on deaths in federal custody in December 2020, and as of August 2022 had published reports on deaths in federal custody for fiscal years 2016 through 2020. Tags: policy,death,investigations Sources: United States Government Accountability Office - [confirmed] BJS oversees federal DCRA data; BJA oversees state data GAO testimony states that within DOJ, BJS oversees the collection of the federal death-in-custody data, and BJA oversees the collection of the state data. Date: 2022-01-01 Tags: policy,legal Sources: United States Government Accountability Office DATA GAPS (1) ---------------------------------------- - [reported] No Georgia match found on BJA DCRA reported-data page A search of the BJA DCRA reported-data page for 'Georgia' and 'State: Georgia' returned no match, indicating no Georgia-specific DCRA death data was retrievable from that page as searched. Tags: investigations,death,policy Sources: BJA DCRA Reported Data FINDINGS (2) ---------------------------------------- - [confirmed] DOJ says DCRA 2013 does not require publishing state data; no plans to do so CRS R47559 states GAO reported that DOJ officials said DCRA 2013 does not require DOJ to publish the in-custody death data it collects from states, and that DOJ has no plans to do so; CRS adds DOJ appears reluctant to release DCRA data due to concerns about completeness. Date: 2023-01-01 Tags: legal,policy,investigations Sources: Death in Custody Reporting Act: Background and Legislative Considerations - EveryCRSReport.com - [confirmed] DOJ not required by DCRA to publish state data; no plans as of September 2022 GAO testimony states DOJ is not required by DCRA to publish state death-in-custody data and, as of September 2022, had no current plans to do so. Date: 2022-09-01 Tags: legal,policy,investigations Sources: United States Government Accountability Office LEGAL FACTS (3) ---------------------------------------- - [confirmed] States required to submit DCRA data starting Q1 FY2020 via BJA PMT CRS R47559 states states were required to begin submitting in-custody death data to BJA starting with the first quarter of FY2020 (October 2019 through December 2019), via BJA's Performance Measurement Tool as a JAG grant performance measure. Tags: legal,policy Sources: Death in Custody Reporting Act: Background and Legislative Considerations - EveryCRSReport.com - [confirmed] DOJ missed December 2016 DCRA report deadline; collection began FY2019 CRS R47559 states DCRA 2013 required DOJ to collect in-custody death data and publish a report using that data by December 2016, but DOJ did not start collecting in-custody death data as required by DCRA 2013 until the beginning of FY2019, and it has yet to release the data it has collected from the states. Tags: legal,policy,investigations Sources: Death in Custody Reporting Act: Background and Legislative Considerations - EveryCRSReport.com - [confirmed] DOJ submitted first DCRA 2013 report to Congress in January 2023 CRS R47559 states DOJ submitted the first report required by DCRA 2013 to Congress in January 2023. Date: 2023-01-01 Tags: legal,policy Sources: Death in Custody Reporting Act: Background and Legislative Considerations - EveryCRSReport.com STATISTICS (4) ---------------------------------------- - [confirmed] 70% of FY2021 state death-in-custody records missing at least one required element GAO testimony report found that 70 percent of records on deaths in custody provided by states in fiscal year 2021 were missing at least one element required by law. Value: 70.0 percent of records Tags: investigations,death,policy Sources: United States Government Accountability Office - [confirmed] Roughly 40% of FY2021 state death-in-custody records lacked circumstances description GAO testimony report found that roughly 40 percent of the records states provided on deaths in custody did not include a description of the circumstances of death. Value: 40.0 percent of records Tags: investigations,death,policy Sources: United States Government Accountability Office - [estimated] Nearly 1,000 deaths potentially unreported to DOJ under DCRA GAO's review of documents on government websites and the Mapping Police Violence database identified nearly 1,000 deaths that potentially should have been reported to DOJ under DCRA but were not. Value: 1000.0 deaths (approximate) Date: 2022-01-01 Tags: investigations,death,policy Sources: United States Government Accountability Office - [reported] Roughly 2,700 federal custody deaths FY2016–FY2020 per BJS GAO testimony states that from fiscal years 2016 through 2020, roughly 2,700 individuals died in federal custody according to BJS's published reports, and DOJ officials said they intend to publish reports on deaths in federal custody on an ongoing basis. Value: 2700.0 deaths (approximate) Tags: death,policy,investigations Sources: United States Government Accountability Office KEY ENTITIES (14) ---------------------------------------- - Bureau of Justice Assistance [organization]: Federal agency within DOJ that assumed responsibility for DCRA data collection from BJS around 2019, after which data quality and transparency deteriorated significantly. (aka: BJA) - Bureau of Justice Statistics [organization]: Federal statistical agency within DOJ that collected and published mortality in correctional institutions data from approximately 2000 until 2019. (aka: BJS) - Congressional Research Service [organization]: Federal agency that published a report on DCRA background and legislative considerations. (aka: CRS) - Death in Custody Reporting Act [legislation]: Federal law originally passed in 2000 and updated in 2013 requiring states receiving Byrne JAG funding to report deaths of any person detained, arrested, or incarcerated to the Attorney General. (aka: DCRA, Public Law 113-242) - Death in Custody Reporting Program [program]: BJS program started under DCRA 2000 to collect data on deaths in state prisons and local jails. (aka: DCRP, Mortality in Correctional Institutions, MCI) - Georgia [organization]: U.S. state that is the subject of this criminal justice data compilation (aka: State of Georgia) - Government Accountability Office [organization]: Federal agency that published the 1998 Truth in Sentencing state grants report. (aka: GAO) - Grant Duwe [person]: Researcher who authored 'Literature Review and Data Analysis on Deaths in Custody' (2022) for NIJ. - Mapping Police Violence [organization]: Database GAO reviewed alongside government websites to identify deaths potentially unreported under DCRA. - Nathan James [person]: Author of CRS Report R47559 on the Death in Custody Reporting Act. - National Institute of Justice [organization]: DOJ research agency that commissioned studies on deaths in custody to meet DCRA 2013 requirements. (aka: NIJ) - National Prisoner Statistics program [program]: BJS data program used as the benchmark against which BJA compared state-reported prison deaths. (aka: NPS) - Office of Justice Programs [organization]: DOJ office that publishes research on justice-related topics, including TBI and mental health outcomes among incarcerated men. (aka: OJP) - U.S. Department of Justice [organization]: Federal agency that published October 2024 findings report on unconstitutional conditions in Georgia prisons. (aka: DOJ) SOURCES (4) ---------------------------------------- - BJA DCRA Reported Data, Bureau of Justice Assistance [data_portal, primary] URL: https://bja.ojp.gov/program/dcra/reported-data - Death in Custody Reporting Act (DCRA) Data Collection | Overview | Bureau of Justice Assistance, Bureau of Justice Assistance (2024-11-15) [data_portal, primary] URL: https://bja.ojp.gov/program/dcra/overview - Death in Custody Reporting Act: Background and Legislative Considerations - EveryCRSReport.com, Congressional Research Service (via EveryCRSReport.com) by Nathan James (2023-05-17) [official_report, secondary] URL: https://www.everycrsreport.com/reports/R47559.html - United States Government Accountability Office, U.S. Government Accountability Office (2022-01-01) [official_report, primary] URL: https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-22-106033.pdf