SEARCH Group, Incorporated

Briefly, the goals of SEARCH are to:
1. Improve the administration of justice through the effective application of information and identification technologies;
2. Promote constitutionally balanced and effective law and policy for justice information systems, technology and policies; and
3. Improve the efficiency, effectiveness and quality of decision making and information management through policy leadership and advocacy, and technical assistance, training and support for local, state and federal justice agencies and legislative bodies.

In order to accomplish the broad goals outlined above, SEARCH has formulated a comprehensive and multifaceted program of research, policy advocacy, technical assistance, training, systems development, communication and information dissemination. Following is a brief description of the primary approach SEARCH takes to address the goals previously outlined:

1. Provide technical assistance, training, education, conferences, workshops, on-line information, publications and symposia to local, state and federal justice agencies regarding justice information management and technology, and its application to contemporary issues in justice;

2. Conduct research regarding crime and criminality, the operation of the justice system, the efficiency and effectiveness of justice information management and technology, and the legal and policy implications of contemporary information technology practices;

3. Develop standards and best practices associated with justice information and identification technology, policy, operations, and systems development;

4. Provide evaluations and evaluative criteria and methodologies for systems, technologies and policies; and

5. Design and test tools for the creation, evaluation, operation and use of information systems, technologies and policy.

SEARCH has played a critical and enduring leadership role in building and supporting criminal history record information (CHRI) systems and information sharing capabilities throughout the nation. SEARCH has tackled this mission through partnerships with the U.S. Department of Justice, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, State agencies, and allied organizations.

Repositories and Systems: SEARCH modeled and helped develop the first state criminal history records repositories. As fingerprint technology became automated, SEARCH helped guide and develop standards for Automated Fingerprint Identification Systems (AFIS) and live-scan devices, and worked with agencies to plan and implement their Computerized Criminal History (CCH) and AFIS systems.
Recognizing the fundamental and interrelated nature of justice information sharing, early SEARCH efforts built standards and recommended systems not just for criminal history records repositories, but also Comprehensive Data Systems (CDS in 1972), Offender-Based Transaction Statistics (OBTS in 1972), Offender-Based State Corrections Information System (OBSCIS in 1976), and Crime Classifications Using Attribute-Based Crime Reporting (ABCR in 1976). In 1980, the FBI implemented the Interstate Identification Index (III), based on the SEARCH model for a decentralized, automated exchange of criminal history records.

National Leadership: SEARCH Members played a crucial role in developing the National Crime Prevention and Privacy Compact, which governs noncriminal justice use of the III, and have provided enduring leadership on the Compact Council since its creation. SEARCH has played critical roles in creating and supporting the III, the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) 2000, the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), and the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS). CCH is built from the operational records and case management systems of justice agencies at state and local levels, and SEARCH has played a leadership role in developing national standards, technical architectures, and operational best practices to plan and implement integrated justice information systems.

Expanding Noncriminal Justice Demand: SEARCH has played a fundamental role in crafting legislation, developing regulations and policies and auditing and data quality improvement strategies, and advocating on behalf of State Criminal History Records Repositories as technology evolved and public demand for access to criminal history records expanded. Over the past two decades we have witnessed massive growth in demand for CHRI for noncriminal justice purposes, including licensing, employment, volunteer screening for those who serve vulnerable populations, and for firearms transactions.

Given SEARCH’s history as an organization that was originally founded to facilitate the exchange of criminal history record information (CHRI) between the States, we are uniquely positioned to conduct surveys on important CHRI issues. SEARCH has conducted surveys on issues that impact how justice information is collected, maintained, and used—and has done so at the request of the Department of Justice, the States, partner organizations, and our Members. Surveys are often conducted of the State central repositories of criminal history information, and sometimes of our own Membership Group—and other surveys have been conducted of the public.

Since 1989, SEARCH has conducted a biennial national survey of state criminal history information systems, then collates and analyzes the results.

The resulting report provides law- and policymakers, administrators, managers, academia, research institutions, and other agencies and individuals with the most comprehensive data available on record quantity and completeness, and on procedures used by repositories to collect information and maintain record quality.

Recipients of the survey typically include U.S. Senators and members of the U.S. House of Representatives, state governors, state attorneys general, law schools and their libraries, public libraries, and public and private security entities—and this report is believed to be the most cited document produced by SEARCH.

Additionally, SEARCH has a long-standing national program of providing mission-critical training and technical assistance to law enforcement, including Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force members.

Since the mid-1980s, when we first created the National Criminal Justice Computer Laboratory and Training Center, we have trained thousands of investigators. One of our first courses was called Data Processing for Law Enforcement Managers. It presented course content that was critical to investigators who were just beginning to use computers, and also was one of the few ‘high-tech’ courses then available to law enforcement.

As technology reaches into nearly all areas of our lives, law enforcement officers are challenged to maintain the skills and tools needed to conduct thorough investigations. Breaks in a case often come only at the expense of perpetrators who make mistakes. But investigators who are unfamiliar with digital evidence can overlook even these kinds of breaks. That is why we are committed to developing and offering courses that help to digitally empower today’s law enforcement community.