2001-2003 Integration JIN Blueprint
Digital Justice
Information Services Board
Justice Information Committee
CJIA Executive Committee
Executive Summary
A Call to Action
JIN Projects 1999-2003
IMPLEMENTATION - Portfolio of Justice Information Network Projects
Ten Year Jin Project Proposal
Memorandum of Understanding
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
DIGITAL JUSTICE. Transforming the way government works
This 2001-2003 Justice Information Network Integration Blueprint represents the Washington justice community's strategy for transforming the way government works and provides services to the public. Specifically, the Blueprint documents the approach that will be taken by the Justice Information Network (JIN) agencies to achieve an integrated justice system in the state of Washington. As such, the Blueprint is an integral part of the Washington State Digital Government Plan, which documents the state's firm commitment and approach for putting government information and services online.
The Digital Government Plan is being implemented with purpose and dispatch, creating Internet-accessible services, interactions, and transactions that are convenient, easy to use, and secure. The principal goal of both the Digital Government Plan and the Blueprint is the delivery of mission-critical information where it is needed, when it is needed, and in a form that is useful to its community of users.
A Single Justice Enterprise
To realize the goal of "information anywhere, anytime," the state of Washington is creating an infrastructure for digital government that treats the state as a single enterprise. This enterprise approach strategically designs and implements multiple, interdependent Internet applications that run on an infrastructure of technology components among state agencies throughout Washington.
Within this larger context of digital government in the award-winning "digital state," the 2001-2003 Justice Information Network Integration Blueprint presents a strategy for careful, coordinated planning to ensure interoperability, ease of use, security, and the responsible investment of taxpayer money. Through a deliberate strategic planning process, the JIN agencies will ensure that their collective information systems will be designed to share information with all authorized users in the state.
The approach to integrated justice presented in this Blueprint begins with a definition of the strategic objectives of the Justice Information Network. The strategic objectives are focused on making complete and accurate information on offenders' identities, criminal histories, and custody status available to all authorized users from a single source in a single session.
The strategic objectives underscore the necessity of automating justice information and work processes so that information can be delivered and used effectively at critical stages of the justice process.
Each agency information system plays a key role in the justice system's ability to enhance public safety, improve the administration of justice, and provide service to the citizens of Washington. Together, the agencies' information systems represent the infrastructure for capturing, processing, and sharing mission-critical justice information where it is needed, when it is needed. To create this infrastructure, each of the justice information systems must be developed and deployed within the larger context of a single justice enterprise. Technology standards and protocols, interoperability guidelines, privacy policies, and security framework all must be implemented within a single enterprise to deliver capability, value, and effectiveness.
Justice Information in Real-time
Information in the state's configuration of justice systems must be available online and in real- time to expedite the justice process fully and fairly. The JIN solution is a Web-based application called the Summary Offender Profile (SOP).
The SOP provides the application for aggregating key justice data from state information systems and making it available from a single source.
As such, the SOP represents a "one-stop shopping center" providing essential information to facilitate the movement of an offender's case through the justice process.
Phase 1 of the Summary Offender Profile application concept was created in the 1999-2001 JIN Integration Blueprint. In Phase 1 the SOP will be tested for its proof of concept, implemented on a Web-based applications server, and made available to authorized users in the justice community. The SOP application will make widely available for the first time summary information derived from the state's criminal history records. The SOP Phase 1 application will be hosted by the Washington State Patrol.
The intent of the 2001-2003 Justice Information Network Integration Blueprint is to expand the information delivery capability of the SOP. This will include offender-related information derived from justice and non-justice systems throughout the enterprise. Moreover, Phase 2 of the Summary Offender Profile (SOP-2) will deliver advanced capabilities for criminal justice practitioners, based on Internet methodologies for searching and retrieving justice information from multiple sources. At the heart of creating Phase 2 of the Summary Offender Profile is a strategic planning process that will include:
- Identification of the agencies that will be served by the SOP,
- Critical information exchange points in the justice process,
- Data elements for exchange; new operational scenarios for digital information exchange,
- A technology template for implementing the SOP on a Web-based application.
Emanating from a deliberate, unified state JIC planning process of state and local justice agencies, SOP-2 will be built, owned, governed, and sustained by the Washington justice community.
SOP-2 will serve the justice community with tactical information in real-time to expedite decision-making at every critical stage of the justice process. Together, the foundation systems and the Summary Offender Profile form a single organization within the larger enterprise of Digital Government in the state of Washington. Information systems in the JIN enterprise will contribute key data elements to SOP-2, as well as provide information in reasonable timeframes to justice users to improve the administration of justice.
Transformation of Service Delivery
While the 2001-2003 Justice Information Network Integration Blueprint is a biennial plan, it also looks into the future on what can be done incrementally in each of the next five biennia to transform the way government works and to achieve significant results.1 With each innovative project, the stage is set for the successes of other near and longer-term projects over the next ten years. The focus, whether short or long term, never leaves the enterprise. The focus never leaves the goal of digital information where it is needed, when it is needed, and in a form that is useful. Accordingly, the Blueprint presents a Portfolio of JIN projects that contribute to achieving the strategic objectives of the JIN.
With its focus on a digital justice enterprise, the Blueprint embraces a paradigm shift from an application-centric to an information-centric view of service delivery. In this shift, mission-critical information is the product to be delivered to the justice community, while technology assumes its appropriate supporting role as the delivery mechanism.
Recognizing the velocity of technological change, the Blueprint envisions "technology refreshes" in the delivery mechanisms for information over the next ten years. Where the personal computer is today's premier delivery technology, it may not hold that position long into the future. New generations of wireless services in computers, phones, and telecommunications will surely change the way information is delivered. As the new modes of information delivery become available, they will be enlisted in the enterprise strategy for digital justice envisioned in this Blueprint.
SHAPING THE JUSTICE INFORMATION ENTERPRISE
The strategies set forth in this 2001-2003 Justice Information Network Integration Blueprint continue to advance the thoughtful, coordinated approach of the Justice Information Network (JIN) agencies toward a single justice information enterprise.
This new release of the Blueprint builds on seminal planning work by the CJIA Executive Committee that began with the passage of the 1984 Criminal Justice Information Act.2 Among its provisions, the Act sought to improve the accuracy, completeness, and timeliness of criminal justice information within the state. The JIN developed strategic and tactical plans for criminal justice records improvement in 1991, expanded and formalized the planning structure to include technical and policy committees in 1992, and articulated a set of business goals for the integration effort (and studied the feasibility of their implementation) in 1997.
Memorandum of Understanding
To formalize its commitment to a shared criminal justice information system, this community of interest developed and signed a Memorandum of Understanding in November 1998.3 The Memorandum of Understanding was signed by the following:
Association of Washington Cities
Washington Association of County Officials
Washington Association of Prosecuting Attorneys
Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs
Washington State Association of Counties
Washington State Association of County Clerks
Washington State Attorney General
Washington State Department of Corrections
Washington State Department of Information Services
Washington State Department of Licensing
Washington State Office of the Administrator for the Courts
Washington State Patrol
As signatories, this community of interest agrees that "no Justice Information Network related system or component will be designed, developed, or integrated without effective participation by state and local stakeholders." All individual agencies will work actively to ensure that their new or enhanced information systems are designed to provide for the electronic sharing of information. Under the terms of the Memorandum, all agencies will promote the benefits and cost-effectiveness of the JIN, and coordinate efforts to ensure that local system designs are compatible with a statewide, integrated Justice Information Network.
The Memorandum of Understanding also supports a Justice Information Network Governance structure among state and local governments, and the continued contributions of the Criminal Justice Information Act (CJIA) Executive Committee and the Justice Information Committee.
JIN Mission Statement and Strategic Objectives
The stated goal of the Justice Information Network is "the total sharing of data from all computer systems servicing the justice community." This goal has been established to achieve the mission of the Justice Information Network, effective August 21, 1997:
The mission of the Justice Information Network (JIN) is to ensure that any criminal justice practitioner in the state will have complete, timely, and accurate information about any suspect or offender. This information will include identity, criminal history and current justice status; will come from data that has been entered only once; and will be available on a single workstation with a single network connection from an automated statewide system. This system and the services it provides will be known as the Justice Information Network.
This mission statement clearly articulates the vision of a single digital justice enterprise.
To make this vision of a digital justice enterprise a reality, the JIN community formulated three strategic objectives defined in the 1999-2001 JIN Biennial Integration Blueprint. These objectives remain the cornerstone of this 2001-2003 Justice Information Network Integration Blueprint. Collectively, these objectives represent the enterprise goals of a single digital justice system in the state of Washington:
- Implementation of real-time, statewide automated fingerprint identification,
- Availability of complete, accurate, and timely information on suspects and offenders,
- Development of a concept for interactive network access to a Summary Offender Profile available to justice agencies through out the state from a single terminal.
These three JIN strategic objectives focus directly on the most serious information management problem facing justice systems across the nation-the inability to know the identity of offenders, the nature and extent of their prior criminal behavior, and their custody status within the justice system. Endemic to the nation's justice process are offenders that elude the justice system by using an alias at the time of arrest, the inability of prosecutors and judges to utilize offenders' complete and accurate criminal histories at the time of prosecution and sentencing, and the inability to know with certainty the custody status of offenders within the justice system.
Strategic Objective 1
Implementation of real-time statewide automated fingerprint identification
The strategic objective of real-time, statewide automated identification is directed at casting a tight net around criminals who attempt to conceal their true identities and their criminal histories by using an alias at the time of arrest or investigation. Without positive identification, violent and habitual offenders may elude warrants for their arrest in Washington and other states.
Strategic Objective 2
Availability of complete, accurate, and timely information on suspects and offenders
The strategic objective of the availability of complete, accurate, and timely information on suspects and offenders is directed at giving the justice system the information necessary to administer justice fairly and effectively. To do that, justice agencies must have information for decision-making at critical stages of the justice process. Complete and accurate criminal history information must be available when and where it is needed and in a form that is useful. With complete and accurate criminal histories, prosecutors and judges will be able to apply the full weight of the law against violent and habitual offenders.
Strategic Objective 3
Development of a concept for interactive network access to a Summary Offender Profile available to justice agencies throughout the state from a single terminal
The strategic objective of a Summary Offender Profile is directed at providing justice practitioners and other authorized users with a single source of information necessary to make daily decisions on criminal cases as they are processed through the stages of the justice system. Placing the Summary Offender Profile application on a Web-based interactive network will enable practitioners to gain direct access from a single terminal to data residing in the justice information systems of all justice agencies contributing to the profile. The SOP-2 will serve as a community of answers to the three most vital questions about offenders: Who are you, what have you done, and where are you? The functions and dependencies in the SOP-2 necessary to answer each of those questions are represented
next.
Who are you? Identifies the functions required to enable real-time criminal identification.
What have you done? Lists the functions necessary to enable complete, accurate offender information.
Where are you? Shows the functions that enable custody status information.
SHARING INFORMATION IN A DIGITAL JUSTICE ENTERPRISE
The agencies in the Justice Information Network are creating the infrastructure for a digital justice enterprise in the state of Washington. With the implementation of each new justice system, the digital justice enterprise is enhanced. The result is the ability to deliver more of the mission-critical information needed for decision-making on offenders and for improving the administration of justice. Justice agencies are creating direct electronic interfaces among systems to provide access to and exchange of mission-critical justice information. When fully implemented, the foundation systems will virtually eliminate paper-based information sharing, along with the need to manually re-enter the information in other justice systems. Clearly, a digital justice enterprise is in the making.
Notwithstanding the capabilities for information access and the numerous interfaces among justice systems, justice users still need to query multiple systems to gather the information needed to expedite decision-making at critical points of the justice process. What is needed at the heart of this digital justice enterprise is a single-source, single-session application for making mission-critical information available to the justice community in real-time. That application is the Summary Offender Profile, Release 2 (SOP-2).
Where the Summary Offender Profile, Release 1, focuses on key information contained in the criminal history record, SOP-2 will build on the criminal history record while enlarging the scope of summary information on offenders. An expanded offender profile will serve the needs of a larger community of interest in the justice community. Modeled on Web-based Internet capabilities, SOP-2 will support advanced query capabilities and serve as an index-pointer system to the information systems in justice agencies that contribute information to the summary profiles.
Functionality of SOP-2
The functionality of SOP-2 is based on the need for sharing complete, accurate, and timely information on offenders-from arrest through prosecution, court adjudication, sentencing, probation, incarceration, and final release from the justice system. Unfortunately, justice agencies must move offenders through the various stages of the justice process without the benefit of complete, accurate, and timely information to make critical decisions. There are simply too many cases to allow the necessary information on offenders to be retrieved from numerous stand-alone justice systems. The situation is exacerbated by the fact that information retrieved from one justice system must be re-entered manually into the next justice system in the process.
When implemented, SOP-2 will provide the justice community with a tactical solution for expediting a case through the justice system in real-time. Based on the premise that a relatively small amount of tactical data is needed at each stage of the justice process, a Web-based application such as SOP-2 could provide that core tactical data on offenders and make it available to all users from a single source in a single computer session.
SOP-2 will provide critical summary information on all known offenders in the state of Washington. At a minimum, the SOP-2 will present complete demographic information, status flags and alerts, a historical record of arrest and prosecution including sentencing information, and up-to-date correctional history and custody status. While functioning primarily as a real-time, tactical solution for effective case processing, SOP-2 will also serve a variety of purposes to other justice users and non-governmental users, as defined in the strategic planning process. Moreover, some of the information in SOP-2 may be deemed appropriate for access by the public.
The information provided by SOP-2 will be derived from the foundation justice systems. Each foundation system will contribute data elements to SOP-2 relevant to its mission as a segment of the justice system. The strategic planning process will identify those data elements needed to expedite the justice process at critical stages, as well as other key data elements that are needed by the state's community of users. The summary offender profiles, therefore, will be created as a by-product of operational justice and non-justice systems. Justice agencies contributing to SOP-2 will retain data sovereignty in their respective information systems while recognizing the interdependence of the justice enterprise. SOP-2 will remain "agency-neutral," acting as a single source of access to multi-justice agency information.
Recognizing that justice users often need to have access to more detailed justice agency records, the functionality of SOP-2 will include an index-pointer capability. Under an index-pointer concept, SOP-2 will not retain entire case records the way a data warehouse does. Rather, SOP-2 will retrieve critical summary data, serving as an index of offenders in the state, and pointing to the agency case files that maintain those complete records. Key data elements in the SOP-2 will be case numbers and other pointers to complete offender records. Using an Internet model, SOP-2's index-pointer capability will be enhanced by a hyperlink function that will allow direct access from the SOP-2 directly to the contributing justice agency systems that contain the full case records.
SOP-2 Operational Scenario
In a hypothetical operational scenario, a local prosecutor might initiate a session using SOP-2 to gather information on a sexual assault case. With proper authorization and authentication, the prosecutor gains access to SOP-2, enters the offender's name and other key demographic data such as date of birth and Social Security Number. SOP-2 searches its offender profiles and returns a match for the offender in question. The prosecutor notes that the Summary Offender Profile includes a list of prior arrests and convictions, custody status, a flag indicating that the subject is a registered sex offender, and that a DNA profile is available from the state crime laboratory. Using the data transfer function of SOP-2, the prosecutor downloads the desired data elements into his or her management information system. The prosecutor then clicks on the court case number provided with the sex offense conviction, and the SOP-2 hyperlink function initiates a query of the court's management information system. Pertinent information from the case is transmitted to the prosecutor's system. The prosecutor then returns to the SOP-2 session and uses the hyperlink function to examine the sex offender registration record. The prosecutor contacts the State Crime Laboratory for additional information on the offender's DNA profile.
This hypothetical SOP-2 scenario is entirely consistent with the state of Washington's goal of transforming government into a single digital enterprise. SOP-2 allows data to be entered once by the contributing agencies, avoids duplication of effort, makes data exchanges through adherence to common standards, and utilizes a common infrastructure to achieve service delivery to users in the justice community and the public. Note also that in this scenario justice agencies share vital information while retaining sovereignty over their individual information systems and the data that is contributed to SOP-2.
Realizing the Mission of the JIN
As a shared solution for single-source, single-session justice transactions, SOP-2 will provide a summary profile of key justice data on offenders that the majority of users on a daily basis need in the majority of cases to facilitate the arrest, prosecution, court, and corrections cycle. In addition, the index-pointer/hyperlink capability will provide the conduit to justice agency case records and other key information maintained by contributing agencies.
When implemented through an interactive digital network, SOP-2 will achieve the mission of the JIN to "include identity, criminal history and current justice status; will come from data that has been entered only once; and will be available on a single workstation with a single network connection from an automated statewide system."
A CALL TO ACTION
The strategic planning process to achieve
integrated justice
Release 2.0 of the JIN Blueprint concludes with a call to action. In adopting the final version, the Justice Information Committee (JIC) and CJIA Executive Committee are committing themselves to a planning process that will move discrete justice partners toward becoming a community of answers.
Consistent with the Memorandum of Understanding, the signatories are dedicating themselves to defining the functions, projects, tasks, and deliverables necessary to realize the community's objectives. In return, there is a reasonable expectation that the results of this planning effort will help clarify budget priorities and funding allocations. Working from the strategic objectives to the functional requirements needed to achieve them, the community will identify the complete set of projects and applications needed to achieve an enterprise justice system.
To that end, an intensive strategic planning process is necessary in the creation and implementation of SOP-2. The strategic planning process will include both an information and a technology specification component. The information component will include a methodology that will, at a minimum:
- Define the agencies that are stakeholders in the justice enterprise,
- Identify the critical information exchange points in the justice process,
- Specify the data elements needed at those critical exchange points,
- Identify other data elements for inclusion in offender profiles,
- Document the current operational scenarios for the exchange of information at the critical information exchange points,
- Create new operational scenarios for electronic exchange of information at the critical information exchange points,
- Specify the data elements that will be presented by SOP-2,
- Specify the design of the SOP-2 application,
- Define the technical architecture that will support the SOP-2.
A brief description of each component of the strategic plan is as follows:
Define the agencies that are stakeholders in the justice enterprise
The intent of this component of the strategic planning process is to identify both the contributors and the users of the SOP-2.
Clearly the agencies in the JIN will play a vital role in contributing justice information to SOP-2. Where SOP-1 represents justice information aggregated by a single justice agency, SOP-2 represents the aggregation of all of the agencies in the JIN. Moreover, the strategic planning process will seek to identify contributors of key information on offenders from other sources, including governmental non-criminal justice agencies.
In addition, the strategic planning process will seek to identify the agencies or entities that represent the customer base of SOP-2. County and city justice agencies are anticipated as being prime consumers of the justice profiles in SOP-2. Given appropriate authorization and security safeguards, some portions of SOP-2 offender profiles and access to other information systems through SOP-2's index-pointer capabilities may be granted to selected non-governmental agencies with a need to know.
Identify the critical information exchange points in the justice process
Critical exchange points represent the places in the justice process where information from one agency's program or system is provided to another agency. Examples include arrest information provided by a law enforcement agency to the prosecutor and prosecutor filing information being provided to the Clerk of the Court. Critical exchange points provide a map of the flow of case information across agencies in the justice enterprise.
Specify the data elements needed at those critical exchange points
At each of the critical exchange points, the strategic planning process seeks to identify the data elements that are exchanged between agencies. The process also seeks to validate that the data elements exchanged meet all of the needs of the recipient agency. Any missing data elements can be identified at this phase of the strategic planning process. Collectively, the data elements at the critical exchange points represent the essential information necessary to expedite a case through the justice process.
Identify other data elements for inclusion in offender profiles
Beyond the purpose of expediting a case through the justice process, the strategic planning process will identify data elements that customers of the SOP-2 find relevant to an offender profile.
Document the current operational scenarios for the exchange of information at the critical information exchange points
An operational scenario describes the way in which information is passed from one agency to the next in the justice process. Information may be passed using paper forms, from telephone contacts, or electronically from one information system to another. Documenting the existing operational scenarios provides valuable information on how information is transferred, as well as identifying constraints on making exchanges fully electronic.
Create new operational scenarios for electronic exchange of information at the critical information exchange points
At this stage of the strategic planning process, the intent of creating new operational scenarios is to "make it digital." Accordingly, new scenarios are developed for electronically exchanging information. This phase of the process allows for the identification of how, when, and to where data exchanges should be made.
Specify the data elements that will be presented in SOP-2
Knowing the how, when, and where of the new operational scenarios, this phase of the process calls for identifying the data elements that will be presented in the SOP-2 application, and which data are best exchanged directly between agency justice systems.
Specify the design of the SOP-2 application
Knowing the data elements for SOP-2, the functional requirements for the SOP-2 application can be defined. Of special importance is the design of the presentation layer of the SOP-2. At this point in the planning process, the JIN community envisions a presentation layer of standard data elements that constitute a complete summary offender profile. Moreover, the JIN community envisions the creation of a customer-oriented presentation layer that will support customers choosing selected elements from the standard set of data elements. This will effectively create screen displays of the key information relevant to the specific customers.
Define the technical architecture that will support the SOP-2 application
Having specified functional requirements for the SOP-2 application, the JIN community will be able to define the appropriate technical architecture to support it. At this point, the JIN community intends to have the SOP-2 application reside on a Web-based, Internet technology model. It is important to recognize that today's technology for Web-supported applications using XML for data exchange allows the SOP-2 to avoid earlier cost-prohibitive technical approaches that relied on major modifications of all contributing agency information systems.
IMPLEMENTATION. PORTFOLIO OF JUSTICE INFORMATION NETWORK PROJECTS
This section of the 2001-2003 Justice Information Network Integration Blueprint presents a portfolio of justice projects that directly contribute to achieving the mission of integrated justice. Each of these contributes to one or more of the three enterprise strategic objectives of the Justice Information Network. A brief description of each project is presented, along with the project's business objectives for electronic information sharing. Collectively, these justice projects represent a snapshot in time of initiatives that contribute directly to achievement of the JIN business objectives.
STRATEGIC OBJECTIVE 1 - Real-Time, Statewide Automated Fingerprint Identification
SEX/KIDNAPPING OFFENDER PHOTOS AND REGISTRY SYSTEM
Agency: Washington State Patrol & Department of Corrections
Project Description: The Department of Corrections maintains photographs or "mug shots" of convicted felons, along with sex and kidnapping offender registration information. These photographs and important justice information are currently not available to agencies in the justice community or to the public. In a joint effort, the Washington State Patrol and the Department of Corrections will commission a feasibility study to (1) develop technical and design specifications for an interface between the DOC records management systems and the WSP's WASIS system, and (2) implement the exchange of photos or information on sex/kidnapping offenders between the DOC and the WSP.
Business Objectives:
- Provide sex/kidnapping photographs and registration information in real-time to justice community and the public through queries of the WASIS system.
- Support real-time identification of sex/kidnapping offenders.
- Provide information for mission-critical decisions on sex/kidnapping offenders.
LOCAL MUG SHOTS
Agency: Washington State Patrol
Project Description: Local law enforcement agencies capture and maintain photographs or "mug shots" of arrested persons. Currently, however, there is no single, centralized system for making offender photographs available throughout the justice community. This project seeks to commission a feasibility study for creating a standardized interface between the WSP's WASIS system and the mug shot systems maintained by local law enforcement agencies.
Business Objectives:
- Create a centralized source of offender mug shots that will be available to the justice community in real-time.
- Support real-time identification of offenders.
ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION OF PHOTOGRAPHS TO LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT
Agency: Washington State Patrol
Project Description: Many law enforcement agencies retain valuable information on sex offenders and other subjects that is not available electronically outside those agencies. A feasibility study is needed to determine the practicality of an interface of storing photographs from local agencies into WASIS and retrieving the photographs from WASIS.
Business Objectives:
- Enhance officer and public safety by improving identification of offenders by providing photographic information.
NATIONAL INSTANT CHECK SYSTEM (NICS) QUERY RESPONSE
Agency: Washington State Patrol
Project Description: The FBI's National Instant Check System (NICS) is designed to identify in real-time offenders that are prohibited from obtaining licenses or permits for firearms. When a query of the NICS reveals the existence of an arrest without a final court disposition, the requesting agency contacts the Washington State Patrol. The WSP then researches the disposition, contacting the courts when appropriate, in an effort to obtain the final court disposition. The disposition is then forwarded to the requesting agency and the final disposition is entered into the WSP's criminal history record system, WASIS. This project seeks to provide the resources to respond to requestor queries in a timely fashion.
Business Objectives:
- Improve the response to queries of the NICS where information on Washington State offenders is incomplete.
- Enhance the ability of the NICS to identify in real-time offenders that have been disqualified from licensing for or purchasing of firearms.
STRATEGIC OBJECTIVE 2 - Complete, accurate, and timely information on suspects and offenders
E-CITATIONS PILOT PROJECT
Agency: Office of the Administrator for the Courts
Project Description: This project assesses the feasibility of enabling law enforcement officers to create electronic citations and transmit them electronically to the Judicial Information System (JIS). In addition, it tests the ability to transmit citation data from JIS to Department of Licensing (DOL) systems in compliance with the Driver History Initiative Project (DHIP). Finally, it establishes a technical architecture and cost estimate for statewide implementation.
Business Objectives:
- Improve the data quality-completeness, accuracy, and reliability of criminal history information by eliminating manual, error prone re-entry of citations by the courts.
- Improve the data timeliness by court filing of citations within a day of creation and transfer to DOL within one day of disposition.
- Improve the data cost by significant elimination of manual processing.
FBI RECORDS RECONCILIATION
Agency: Washington State Patrol
Project Description: The Washington State Patrol's WASIS system automatically transmits criminal history information to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Interstate Identification Index (III). The purpose of the III is to make complete, accurate, and reliable information on offenders available to authorized justice agencies on a national basis. Data transmission errors have occurred, resulting in a variance in the records maintained by the WSP and the FBI. The intent of the project is to make system modifications to prevent the corruption of data in the transmission between the WASIS and III.
Business Objectives:
- Provide the highest quality criminal history record information to support national justice programs.
- Provide criminal history information of the highest data quality-complete, accurate, and reliable-to justice users nationwide.
- Support mission-critical decisions on offenders by having access to
- criminal history record information on a national basis.
FELONY DISPOSITION AND SENTENCE REPORTING
Agency: Washington State Patrol and Office of the Administrator for the Courts
Project Description: The Washington State Patrol currently receives felony disposition and sentence reports from the Office of the Administrator for the Courts (OAC) in the form of paper printouts from the OAC's Superior Court Management Information System (SCOMIS). The WSP then must manually enter the felony dispositions and sentencing information into its WASIS system to create complete and accurate criminal history records. This project is designed to create an electronic interface between SCOMIS and WASIS to permit the electronic transmission and entry of felony disposition and sentencing information into the criminal history record.
Business Objectives:
- Improve the data quality, completeness, accuracy, and reliability-of criminal history information by eliminating manual, error prone re-entry of information.
- Improve the timeliness of access to criminal history record information by replacing the labor-intensive, time-consuming manual process of data entry with electronic data exchange.
MISDEMEANOR DISPOSITION REPORTING
Agency: Washington State Patrol and Office of the Administrator for the Courts
Project Description: As with felony disposition reporting, the current process for reporting misdemeanor dispositions is a paper-based manual process. The Office of the Administrator for the Courts maintains misdemeanor dispositions in its District Court Information System (DISCIS). In a joint project between the OAC and the WSP, the goal is to develop a system for the electronic transmission of misdemeanor court dispositions and their automatic entry into the criminal history record system, WASIS.
Business Objectives:
- Improve the data quality completeness, accuracy, and reliability-of criminal history information by eliminating manual, error prone re-entry of misdemeanor court dispositions.
- Improve the timeliness of access to criminal history record information by replacing the labor-intensive, time-consuming manual process with electronic data exchange.
NATIONAL SEX OFFENDER (NSOR) PILOT
Agency: Office of the Administrator for the Courts
Project Description: This project assesses the feasibility of modifying Justice Information System (JIS) to collect necessary data elements for the National Sex Offender Data Registry, transmit those data electronically to the WSP, and provide those data in appropriate formats to probation officers via their case management systems.
Business Objectives:
- Provide an electronic system for the collection, maintenance, and dissemination of sex offender information.
NATIONAL SEX OFFENDER (NSOR) SUPPORT
Agency: Washington State Patrol
Project Description: The National Sex Offender Registry (NSOR) is an information system developed by the federal government to facilitate the sharing of information on all registered sex offenders in the United States. Washington State employs its new criminal history record system, W2, to submit entries of registered sex offenders to the NSOR. This project seeks resources for the continued operation and support of this important national justice program.
Business Objectives:
- Ensure the continued participation of the state of Washington in vital national justice programs designed to provide quality criminal justice information on offenders.
- Maintain the resources for the collection, maintenance, and dissemination of sex offender information.
CONTINUED IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROCESS CONTROL NUMBER
Agency: Washington State Patrol
Project Description: The Process Control Number (PCN) is a data integrity mechanism designed to link and track case information on an offender from arrest, through prosecution, court adjudication, sentencing, custody, and release from the justice system. The PCN serves as a unique event identifier that relates information on an offender at various segments of the justice process to the same case. As a tracking number for a case as it progresses through the justice process, the PCN provides a method for electronically transferring justice information with data integrity safeguards. Moreover, the PCN is the critical link for matching arrests with final court dispositions in the state's criminal history record system, WASIS. The PCN has been implemented in 36 counties, which constitutes 81 percent of the state's criminal history submissions to the WSP. This project is aimed at implementing the PCN in the remaining threes counties.
Business Objectives:
- Improve the justice system's ability to track case information through the various stages of the criminal justice case process.
- Improve the accuracy and completeness of criminal history record information maintained in WASIS by providing a mechanism to accurately link arrest and final court dispositions.
- Provide timely availability of criminal history record information to the community of justice users and the public by eliminating the labor-intensive and time-consuming process of manually linking arrests and final court dispositions.
ELIMINATE BACKLOGS OF FINGERPRINT CARDS AND COURT DISPOSITIONS
Agency: Washington State Patrol
Project Description: The intent of this project is to obtain the resources to eliminate the backlog of work related to processing arrest fingerprint cards and court disposition reports. The extent of the backlog problem is severe. The fingerprint backlog has increased eight percent per year over the past four years, while court disposition backlogs have accrued at a rate of 39 percent for the same period. Processing time for these paper-based records to be entered into the Washington State Patrol's Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) and Washington State Identification System (WASIS) is as follows:
Misdemeanor Arrest Fingerprint Cards
Felony Arrest Fingerprint Cards
Misdemeanor Court Dispositions
Felony Court Dispositions
Felony Judgement and Sentence Documents
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10 months
1-2 months
24-30 months
12-15 months
7 months
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The result of these backlogs is that positive identification of offenders is delayed for months, while the ability of the WSP to provide complete and accurate criminal history records to the justice community and the public is severely compromised.
Business Objectives:
- Provide complete, accurate criminal history record information in a timely manner to the community of criminal justice agencies in the state of Washington, other states, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
- Identify offenders through AFIS in a timely manner so that the justice system can take appropriate action at each stage of the justice process.
- Improve the use of criminal history record information for investigative purposes.
- Enhance officer and public safety through access to complete information on known offenders.
- Prevent violent and habitual offenders - including those who also may have outstanding warrants for their arrest in other jurisdictions - from eluding the justice system by using an alias name at the time of arrest.
- Prevent offenders from receiving lighter sentences because their full criminal histories could not be considered at judgment and sentencing.
- Prevent ineligible offenders from obtaining licenses to carry or permits to purchase firearms.
- Prevent schools or volunteer organizations from hiring persons with criminal histories that prohibits them from having contact with vulnerable segments of the public, such as children or elderly adults.
ELECTRONIC JUDGMENT AND SENTENCING
Agency: Office of the Administrator for the Courts
Project Description: This project is designed to create an application within the Office of the Administrator for the Courts (OAC) called Electronic Judgment and Sentencing. This system will provide for the electronic transmission of warrants, protective orders, and judgment and sentencing data to the Washington State Patrol's justice information systems. The current methodology provides this information in paper format. Warrants and protection orders, for example, are issued by the courts, entered into the court system, and manually re-entered into the WSP's Washington Crime Information Center (WACIC) system. This very time-consuming and labor-intensive process prevents mission-critical justice information from being available through electronic access to the WASIS system.
Business Objectives:
- Sentence data through the Washington State Patrol's WASIS system.
- Improve the accuracy and completeness of criminal history record.
- Improve information maintained in WASIS by eliminating data entry errors related to the manual reentry of justice information from one system to another.
- Facilitate the timely availability of warrants, protective orders, and criminal history record information to the community of justice users and the public.
- Facilitate the electronic sharing of justice information between the OAC's Justice Information System and the WSP's WASIS system.
WASHINGTON INCIDENT-BASED REPORTING SYSTEM
Agency: Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs
Project Description: The Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC) intends to implement an Incident-Based Reporting System (WIBRS) with a modern, intuitive, windows-based user interface. This system will also be accessible remotely though any standard Web browser. System characteristics will include:
- A modern, intuitive, windows-based user interface.
- Remote access capability through any standard Web browser.
- Reduce or eliminate deployment costs due to centralizing code-based and automated delivery mechanism.
- An extensible system architecture that can grow with the needs of WASPC by storing data in a scalable backend relational database management system.
- A system that will integrate with third party products and services.
Business Objectives:
- Provide online, real-time access to the WIBRS/NIBRS Program.
- Provide complete, accurate and detailed information to the legislature and law enforcement agencies statewide.
- Allow the identification of common crime problems, trends, suspect descriptors, and suspect actions.
- Enhance investigation by furnishing detailed information regarding specific crimes.
- Enhance officer and public safety.
- Utilize limited resources more effectively and efficiently and stem the rising crime rate.
- Ability to search the database for crime patterns, or for crimes that match a particular set of characteristics.
W2 ACCESS VIA WEB TECHNOLOGIES
Agency: Washington State Patrol
Project Description: W2 is the name of the Washington State Patrol application that integrates the Washington Crime Information Center (WACIC), Washington State Identification System (WASIS), and Sex/Kidnapping Offender Registry (SOR) databases in a single system. W2 consolidates offender information and eliminates problems associated with information residing in disparate systems. This project improves the accessibility of the information by implementing Web technologies for retrieval, display, and reporting.
Business Objectives:
- Provide online access to critical offender information contained in WSP data bases from a single session and application.
- Provide a single source for complete, accurate, and reliable criminal history information, including felony conviction histories for filings, plea agreements, and sentencing.
- Provide a single source for complete, accurate and reliable information on missing persons, persons involved in domestic violence situations, and information on stolen, abandoned, recovered, or impounded property.
- Enhance WSP's ability to comply with its responsibility to forward arrest and fingerprint information to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Interstate
- Identification Index (III) and Integrated Automatic Fingerprint Identification System (IAFIS).
- Provide WSP's community of users with online reliable information on sex and kidnapping registrants, details of the crimes, and registration compliance.
- Provide WSP's community of users online reliable information on wanted persons.
OMNI PHASE 2
Agency: Department of Corrections
Project Description: Phase 2 of the Offender Management Network Information (OMNI) project continues the replacement of the 20 year old Offender-Based Transaction System (OBTS). As a complete offender custody management system, OMNI will provide access in real-time to mission-critical offender and custody status information, including access to information in the Offender Accountability Plan. OMNI also will provide administrative information in reasonable time through access to its Data Warehouse application. OMNI Phase 2 will include a standard interface that will improve information sharing with its major customers.
Business Objectives:
- Migrate from an offender tracking system to a flexible management information system that will automatically generate administrative and tactical information needed by DOC's community of users.
- Provide the community of users with information on the status of offenders, release dates, and levels of required supervision.
- Comply with requirements to provide timely notification to victims and witnesses on offender status or location changes.
- Comply with court mandates to supply information such as the geographic location of sex and violent offenders released into the community.
- Comply with state mandates to manage offenders based on risk.
STATEWIDE JAIL BOOKING AND REPORTING SYSTEM
Agency: Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs
Project Description: Development of a Statewide Jail Booking System by the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC) will provide complete, accurate, and timely information on every arrest booking as well as offender custody status. The system will permit more effective use of jail resources, provide administrative information in reasonable time for better planning, and improve the coordination between local and state corrections agencies. Having completed its feasibility study in August 1999, WASPC will develop system specifications and release a Request for Proposal in March 2001. WASPC intends to issue the award to develop the system in October 2001.
Business Objectives:
- Provide complete, accurate, and timely information on arrest bookings and custody status in real-time.
- Enhance the ability of the community of justice users to perform risk assessment on offenders through access to tactical information on jail bookings and custody history.
- Enhance officer and public safety through access to complete jail booking and custody history information.
- Provide consistent and reliable information on jail capacity and population in the state of Washington.
- Provide the Office of Financial Management with administrative information to perform jail capacity forecasts.
- Provide the Washington State Legislature with administrative information to assess the impact of new laws on local jails.
JAIL MANAGEMENT-W2 INTERFACE
Agency: Washington Association of Sheriffs and Chiefs of Police
Project Description: The Washington Association of Sheriffs and Chiefs of Police (WASPC) plan to implement a new Jail Management System. This new system will provide the capability to maintain and share information on arrest bookings and custody status of offenders throughout the state. As such, the Jail Booking System represents a rich source of offender information to the community of justice users and the public in the State of Washington. The Jail Management-W2 Interface project calls for a feasibility study to create an electronic data sharing capability between the Jail Management System and W2. Upon successful completion of the feasibility study, WASPC will implement the interface.
Business Objectives:
- Enhance WASPC’s ability to comply with requirements for reporting booking and custody information to the WSP.
- Improve the completeness, accuracy, and timeliness of criminal history record information available to the community of justice users and the public.
- Enhance officer and public safety through access to complete criminal history information on known offenders through a single source, single session application.
LAW ENFORCEMENT DATA ACCESS
Agency: Department of Licensing
Project Description: The Department of Licensing collects and maintains important information on citizens in the state of Washington. DOL's information system contains demographic information, including name, date of birth, social security number, drivers license number, and current address. Moreover, the DOL information system contains vital information on traffic violation information, including driving under-the-influence violations. The Law Enforcement Data Access project is focused on the design and implementation of a system that will enable law enforcement agencies to conduct online, real-time searches of the DOL information system for investigative purposes.
Business Objectives:
- Provide online, real-time access to the information in the DOL information system by the law enforcement community in the state of Washington.
- Enhance the investigation, identification, apprehension, and prosecution of offenders.
- Enhance officer and public safety through online, real-time access to DOL person record information.
CLIENT ACTIVITY TRACKING SYSTEM (CATS), PHASES 1 & 2
Agency: Juvenile Rehabilitation Administration
Project Description: The Juvenile Rehabilitation Administration's (JRA) current information system is over 20 years old and no longer meets the needs of JRA staff or those agencies dependent on data from Juvenile Rehabilitation Administration (JRA). The goal of the Client Activity Tracking System (CATS) Project is to provide a technology for JRA staff to more quickly and more comprehensively access data about their clients. During the Phase 1, the existing system will be Web-enabled to build a user-friendly, trainable platform for system expansion. Phase 2 will focus on a system enhancement that will automate much of the current paper filing system used to support case management.
Business Objectives:
- Capture electronically virtually all of the data currently maintained in paper case file by end of 2001-2003 biennium.
- Build efficiencies in data collection with justice system partners.
Strategic Objective 3 - Interactive network access to a summary offender profile
SUMMARY OFFENDER PROFILE, RELEASE 1
Agency: Washington State Patrol
Project Description: Release 1 of the Summary Offender Profile expands the demonstration version presented in conjunction with Washington State Patrol's Washington Access To Criminal History (WATCH). The expanded version enhances the search functions for law enforcement as investigative tools, provides reports by selective parameters as management tools for law enforcement, connecting to other JIN applications, and appropriate links.
Business Objectives:
- Provide online access to criminal history and other offender information.
- Improve the decision-making process at critical stages of the justice process by making offender information more readily available.
- Improve the use of criminal history and offender information for investigative purposes.
- Extend the availability of sex/kidnapping offender registry information to the public including mug shot, offense information, and location information.
- Enhance officer and public safety through availability of summary criminal history information on known offenders.
SUMMARY OFFENDER PROFILE, RELEASE 2
Agency Neutral: Owned and Managed by the JIN Community
Project Description: Summary Offender Profile, Release 2 (SOP-2) is a Web-based application for aggregating key justice data from multiple state justice information systems and making it available in real-time from a single source in a single session. As such, SOP-2 represents a "one-stop shopping center" for essential information to facilitate the movement of an offender's case through critical stages of the justice process. The information provided by SOP-2 will be extracted from the state's operational justice systems. Each system will contribute data elements to SOP-2 relevant to its mission as a segment of the justice system. Justice agencies contributing to SOP-2 will retain data sovereignty in their respective information systems. SOP-2 will remain an "agency-neutral" application, acting as a single source of access to multi-justice agency information.
Business Objectives:
- Provide a single source, single session, agency-neutral application for real-time information sharing.
- Provide a security and authentication gateway for access to the application.
- Provide advanced query capability to allow retrieval of key data from contributing agency information systems.
- Provide a multi-agency data element template that provides a summary of retrieved offender demographic data, status flags and alerts, mug shot, fingerprint image, and summary data on criminal history and custody status.
- Comply with evolving national models for justice information, including the national models for expanded criminal history information and critical exchange points.
- Provide an index-pointer capability to allow a single point of access to more detailed information on offenders in the contributing agency information systems.
- Utilize Internet-style hot-links to activate the index-pointer capability based on key case numbers in the data element template.
MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING
IN SUPPORT OF THE SHARING OF INFORMATION WITHIN WASHINGTON'S CRIMINAL JUSTICE COMMUNITY
WHEREAS, state and local members of the Washington Criminal Justice community pledge to work in partnership in promoting the development of electronic information sharing; and
WHEREAS, state and local criminal justice agencies are committed to the cost efficient, secure, and effective exchange of electronic data; and
WHEREAS, state and local criminal justice agencies pledge to work cooperatively in the development of a governance plan to insure equitable representation and stability in the development of a shared criminal justice information system,
THEREFORE, the undersigned agree to the following:
State and local parties agree that no "Justice Information Network" related system or component will be designed, developed, or integrated into the network without effective participation of state and local stakeholders.
The Department of Licensing (DOL), Department of Corrections (DOC), Office of the Administrator for the Courts (OAC), the Washington State Patrol (WSP), and the Attorney General (AG) will actively work to ensure that their new or enhanced information systems are designed to provide for the electronic sharing of information.
The Washington Association of County Officials (WACO), Washington Association of Prosecuting Attorneys (WAPA), Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC), Association of Washington Cities (AWC), Washington State Association of Counties (WSAC), and Washington State Association of County Clerks (WSACC) agree to promote the benefits, and cost effectiveness of the Justice Information Network, and actively support and encourage cooperation and coordination in local system design that assures compatibility and integration with a statewide shared Justice Information Network.
The Department of Information Services (DIS) agrees to support a Project Coordinator for the development and stewardship of the Justice Information Network.
The undersigned pledge to support the development of a Justice Information Network Governance structure between state and local agencies by July 1, 1998, through a cooperative dialogue within the forums known as the Executive Committee, and the Justice Information Committee. Promotion and adoption of a governance proposal shall be promulgated by the Ad-hoc Justice Information Network committee hosted by WACO and the Information Services Board.
Signatories
Fred Saeger
Washington Association
of County Officials
Thom McBride
Washington Association
of Prosecuting Attorneys
Larry Erickson
Washington Association
of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs
Stan Finkelstein
Association of
Washington Cities
Gary Lowe
Washington State
Association of Counties
Donna Karvia
Washington State
Association of County Clerks
Evelyn Yenson
Washington State
Department of Licensing
Joseph Lehman
Washington State
Department of Corrections
Mary McQueen
Washington State
Office of the Administrator of the Courts
Annette Sandberg
Washington State Patrol
Christine Gregoire
Washington State
Attorney General
Steve Kolodney
Washington State
Department of Information Services