About the Safety and Justice Program
The Safety and Justice Program is the home for RAND research on occupational safety, transportation safety, food safety, and public safety (including violence, policing, corrections, substance abuse, and public integrity).
Featured Activity
National Summit on Recruitment and Retention — Jun. 17 & 18, 2008
Recruitment and retention of police officers is an increasing challenge for police agencies. In response, the RAND Center on Quality Policing is gathering police leaders from across the U.S. and is hosting a National Summit on Police Recruitment and Retention in the Contemporary Urban Environment.
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Featured Research
Featured Center
The RAND Center on Quality Policing (CQP) analyzes contemporary police practice and policy to determine what practices
are most cost-effective and results-oriented, thus helping U.S. law enforcement agencies make better operational decisions.
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Congressional Newsletter
More »Selected News and Publications
Easing Restrictions on Deliveries to Postal Mailboxes Could Hurt Efforts to Keep Mail Safe — Oct. 23, 2008
Allowing private courier services to deliver items into mailboxes could hamper efforts by the U.S. Postal Service to safeguard the nation's mail. Although the impact of such a change is likely to be moderate, it could diminish public safety and security by diluting the effectiveness of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
Full Document
News Release
Quarterly Report on Los Angeles County Juvenile Justice Crime Prevention Rates Home-Based Programs — Oct. 10, 2008
A detailed review of five Los Angeles home-based programs determines how their current practices compare with the literature on best practices in corrections, and assigns scores to each for their ability to deliver quality interventions and services for offenders.
Full Document
Disrupting Illegal Gun Markets - April 30, 2008
Could a data-driven, problem-solving approach yield new interventions to disrupt local, illegal gun markets serving criminals, gang members, and juveniles in Los Angeles? Law enforcement can analyze patterns in crime-gun data to trace illicit firearm acquisition, use community-based interventions to stem the illegal flow, and use retail ammunition-purchase records in identifying prohibited firearm possessors.
Full Document
Safety and Justice Congressional Newsletter - February 19, 2008
This month's Congressional Newsletter features research on racial bias in police stops and a project studying rates of recidivism for legal and illegal immigrants.
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Caruth Dallas Police Institute lands at the University of North Texas following RAND study - January 8, 2008
Following the recommendation of a RAND study to identify an optimal strategic investment in the Dallas Police Department, the Communities Foundation of Texas
(CFT) granted $9.5 million to the University of North Texas to create the W.W. Caruth, Jr. Dallas Police Institute.
Read CFT Press Release
Community Policing and Violence Prevention in Oakland — Jan. 8, 2008
An assessment of the first-year progress of community-policing and violence-prevention programs in Oakland funded by Measure Y
found that implementation of community policing has been delayed, but violence-prevention programs have been implemented as planned.
Full Document
Human Trafficking Problem Hits Close to Home — Oct. 19, 2007
While many of us think of human trafficking—both sex and labor trafficking—as occurring mostly in foreign countries, it is a growing national concern, and one that often hits home in local communities.
Full Document
News Release
Safety and Justice Congressional Newsletter - October 19, 2007
This month's Congressional Newsletter highlights reports on human trafficking, racial profiling, and the Bankruptcy Act of 2005.
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Prebankruptcy Credit Counseling - September 12, 2007
The U.S. Trustee Program asked RAND for help in examining what constitutes effective prebankruptcy credit counseling and how to measure it. RAND presents conclusions and recommendations in this report.
Full Document
Related Report:
Full Document The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005
Identifying Fraud, Abuse, and Error in Personal Bankruptcy Filings - September 12, 2007
On behalf of the U.S. Trustee Program, RAND examined ways to better identify and measure fraud, abuse, and error in personal bankruptcies. Conclusions include lessons learned from the IRS and the private sector may provide the direction for the future of the bankruptcy court system.
Full Document
Protecting Emergency Responders at Large-Scale Incidents - September 12, 2007
Testimony presented before the House Education and Labor Committee on September 12, 2007, by Brian A. Jackson. Includes insight into why 9/11 WTC recovery workers were not properly protected. Also includes recommended "key ingredients" in implementing an integrated approach to safety management.
Full Document
Prison Health Care - July 12, 2007
California's ill and aging prison population needs improved health care - not just as a matter of compassion, but to protect the health and safety of the rest of us.
Read Commentary
Focus on the Worst Ex-Cons and Boost Community-Based Rehab - May 27, 2007
Taking funds needed for new rehabilitation- and community-supervision programs and using them to build new prison beds is a costly and shortsighted solution to the problem of soaring prisoner populations and rising corrections costs.
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National Computer Security Survey Measures Impact of Cybercrime - May 2, 2006
Sponsored by the U.S. Departments of Justice and Homeland Security, the National Computer Security Survey will report on the number and consequences
of cyber attacks, frauds and thefts of information among the 5.3 million businesses in the United States.
News
Release
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Mental Health Courts Have the Potential to Save Taxpayers Money - Mar. 1, 2007
Special courts that sentence people with mental illness who are convicted of misdemeanors and low-level felonies to treatment instead of jail have the potential to save taxpayers money.
Full Document
News Release
Improving Recruitment and Retention in New Orleans - March 30, 2007
Hurricane Katrina created unprecedented staffing challenges for the New Orleans Police Department. The RAND Center on Quality Policing staff analyzed the problems and developed lessons for the City based on RAND's experience with large personnel systems.
News Release
Research Brief
Full Document
Center on Quality Policing Research Area
RAND will conduct an assessment of how the New York City Police Department conducts pedestrian stops - March 1, 2007
Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly announced that the RAND Corporation will conduct this comprehensive and objective assessment of how the New York City Police Department stops and questions pedestrians. RAND will analyze more than 500,000 pedestrian stops that occurred during 2006, in addition to and engaging in interviews and observations of current officers conducting stops.
News Release
Nanomaterials in the Workplace - Jan. 4, 2007
Testimony presented to public meeting on research needs related to the environmental, health, and safety aspects of engineered nanoscale materials on January 4, 2007.
Full Document
RAND Corporation Will Assess NYPD Firearms Training & Tactics and Firearms Discharge Review Procedures - Jan. 4, 2007
RAND was chosen to perform an objective and comprehensive review of the New York City Police Department's firearms training and tactical procedures. The study will collect information about similar firearms training nationwide and identify best practices. The study is expected to be completed by summer of 2007.
News Release