The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office has launched a public data dashboard to support what they said will promote “transparency, accountability, and community engagement” within the criminal justice system.
The District Attorney’s office intends to update data regularly on victim and defendant race and ethnicity, filed cases by year, and other data, said District Attorney Jeff Rosen.
According to prosecutors in Santa Clara County, victims of violent crime are disproportionally Hispanic and Black, which the office said indicates a need for victim services.
Rosen’s office has also filed criminal charges in 75% of cases given to them by police, “and that percentage was nearly identical for all race and ethnic groups,” a spokesperson for the office said.
“These numbers show the reality of our criminal justice system, highlighting what we are doing right and what can be improved,” Rosen said in a statement. “Transparency should not be a buzzword. It means that we are all partners in making Santa Clara County as safe and as fair as we can.”
The project is a collaboration between the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office and the Prosecutorial Performance Indicators project. The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and the Microsoft Justice Reform Initiative also supported the project, according to prosecutors.
“We are proud to collaborate with the Santa Clara District Attorney’s Office — our first site in California — in launching this groundbreaking initiative,” PPI co-manager Melba Pearson said. “By providing stakeholders with access to comprehensive data, we empower communities to advocate for equitable and effective criminal justice policies.”
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