Frequently Asked Questions

What are the requirements for federal law enforcement agencies under the Death in Custody Reporting Act (DCRA)?

President Obama signed the Death in Custody Reporting Act (DCRA) of 2013 (P.L. 113-242) into law on December 18, 2014. The Act requires the head of each federal law enforcement agency to report annually to the Attorney General "information regarding the death of any person who is—

  • (1) detained, under arrest, or is in the process of being arrested by any officer of such federal law enforcement agency (or by any State or local law enforcement officer while participating in and for purposes of a federal law enforcement operation, task force, or any other federal law enforcement capacity carried out by such federal law enforcement agency); or

  • (2) en route to be incarcerated or detained, or is incarcerated or detained at—(A) any facility (including any immigration or juvenile facility) pursuant to a contract with such Federal law enforcement agency; (B) any State or local government facility used by such federal law enforcement agency; or (C) any federal correctional facility or federal pre-trial detention facility located within the United States.

What is the FDCRP?

The Federal Death in Custody Reporting Program (FDCRP) collects all mandatory reports as defined by the DCRA of 2013 (P.L. 113-242). The Act requires reporting for each fiscal year, beginning with Fiscal Year 2016.

The U.S. Department of Justice has designated the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) to collect all federal law enforcement agency reports as required by the DCRA of 2013 (P.L. 113-242). To collect these reports, BJS is conducting a survey of federal agencies with law enforcement, detention, and/or incarceration functions.

What is the Bureau of Justice Statistics?

The U.S. Department of Justice has designated the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) to collect all federal law enforcement agency reports as required by the DCRA of 2013 (P.L. 113-242). BJS is the principal statistical agency of the U.S. Department of Justice. BJS's primary function is the compilation and analysis of criminal justice data and the dissemination of information for statistical purposes.

If you have questions about the authority to conduct this survey or whether this is a legitimate data collection effort, please contact Sean Goodison, BJS Program Manager, at sean.goodison@usdoj.gov or 202-532-5148.

What federal agencies are required to report to the FDCRP?

All federal agencies with law enforcement, detention and/or incarceration functions are required to report to the FDCRP.

  • Federal agencies with law enforcement functions employ at least one officer with arrest powers.
  • Federal agencies with detention or incarceration functions have the authority to detain or incarcerate individuals for violation of federal criminal or administrative law in federally- or contractually-operated facilities.

What deaths are reportable to the FDCRP?

Federal law enforcement agencies should report all arrest-related and detention or incarceration deaths that occurred under their jurisdiction in a given fiscal year. A death is arrest-related when the incident causing the death (e.g., gunshot wound, self-inflicted injury) occurred while the decedent's freedom to leave was restricted by the responding federal law enforcement agency, either in the field or in a temporary holding facility. Incarceration or detention deaths are those that occur while the decedent was under your agency's supervision, detained or incarcerated for violation of federal criminal or administrative law, and housed in any facility designed to detain or incarcerate such individuals for longer than 72 hours.

If you are unsure whether a death is reportable to the FDCRP, please contact the FDCRP Helpdesk (1-877-475-7039; doj-dcra@rti.org).

My agency has no deaths to report. Do I have to fill anything out?

Yes. If your agency has no deaths to report, you need to submit only the FDCRP Annual Summary (CJ-13). Completing this form will take about 5 minutes. The information collected is necessary to calculate a true count of all deaths as defined by the DCRA of 2013. A separate summary form should be submitted for each fiscal year. We are currently collecting data for fiscal year 2023 (October 1, 2022 – September 30, 2023). Every agency should complete one (1) Annual Summary for this time period.

What is an arrest-related death?

A death is arrest-related when the incident causing the death (e.g., gunshot wound, self-inflicted injury) occurred while the decedent's freedom to leave was restricted by the responding federal law enforcement agency, either in the field or in a temporary holding facility. Arrest-related deaths include any death that occurred:

  • While the decedent's freedom to leave was restricted by federal law enforcement prior to, during, or following an arrest.
  • As a result of use of force by federal law enforcement personnel acting in an official capacity (e.g., officer-involved shootings, accidental deaths caused by less-than-lethal weapons or tactics).
  • As a result of fatal medical conditions that present during an arrest-process (e.g., cardiac arrest).
  • During transport to or from law enforcement, detention, incarceration, or medical facilities.
  • While the decedent was confined in a lockup or booking center (i.e., facilities designed to hold detainees for no longer than 72 hours).
  • During an interaction with federal law enforcement personnel during response to medical or mental health assistance (e.g., response to suicidal persons).

What is a detention or incarceration death?

The DCRA defines a detention or incarceration death as "the death of any person who is en route to be incarcerated or detained, or is incarcerated or detained at— (A) any facility (including any immigration or juvenile facility) pursuant to a contract with such Federal law enforcement agency; (B) any State or local government facility used by such Federal law enforcement agency; or (C) any Federal correctional facility or Federal pretrial detention facility located within the United States." Detention or incarceration deaths include any death of persons:

  • Confined in correctional facilities operated by the responding federal agency, whether housed under your jurisdiction or that of another agency (federal, state, or local).
  • Under your jurisdiction, but housed in private correctional facilities.
  • Under your jurisdiction but confined in special facilities (e.g., medical/treatment/release centers, halfway houses, police/court lockups, and work farms).
  • In transit to or from your facility while under your supervision.

What is the difference between an arrest-related and detention or incarceration death?

Detention or incarceration deaths occur in facilities designed to hold individuals for more than 72 hours. Arrest-related deaths occur in the field or in temporary holding facilities or staging areas. If the incident causing the death occurred prior to incarceration (e.g., death due to ingestion of an illicit substance), but the actual death occurred while the decedent was confined in a facility designed to hold individuals for more than 72 hours, the death is considered to be detention or incarceration. When in doubt, consider where the actual death occurred to determine whether it is arrest-related or a detention/ incarceration death.

What is the purpose of the FDCRP data collection forms?

CJ-13: FDCRP Annual Summary - Requests federal law enforcement agencies to indicate whether they have authority to arrest, detain, or incarcerate individuals or employ officers who are authorized to carry firearms, whether any arrest, detention, or incarceration deaths occurred in their jurisdiction in a given fiscal year, and if so, how many.

CJ-13A: Arrest-Related Death Incident Report- For each identified arrest related-death, federal law enforcement agencies provide information on decedent characteristics and circumstances surrounding the death.

CJ-13B: Detention/Incarceration Death Incident Report- For each identified detention or incarceration death, federal law enforcement agencies provide information on decedent characteristics and circumstances surrounding the death.

How do I report data to the FDCRP?

Data may be entered directly into the online forms, which are available through the FDCRP website, www.doj-dcra.org.

All access to the reporting section of the FDCRP website requires a secure login and password. Each federal law enforcement agency will receive instructions to log into the system. If you are having difficulty accessing the system or have not received your login information, please call the FDCRP Helpdesk at (877) 475-7039 or send an e-mail to doj-dcra@rti.org.

Are there any other ways to report data to the FDCRP?

The CJ-13 form must be completed online at the FDCRP website (www.doj-dcra.org). The CJ-13A and CJ-13B forms may be downloaded in hard copy format from the website and submitted via mail or password-protected/encrypted email. If you have any questions about how to submit the forms securely, please send an e-mail to doj-dcra@rti.org.

How do I submit data by mail?

Please mail your completed forms to:

RTI International
c/o Erin Kennedy, Federal Death in Custody Reporting Program (FDCRP)
3040 Cornwallis Road, P.O. Box 12194
Research Triangle Park, NC 27709-2194

How do I submit scanned data by e-mail?

If you prefer to scan your paper forms and send them via e-mail, you may send the images in a password-protected/encrypted email to doj-dcra@rti.org. Please note that because of the large size of these messages, this is the least preferred mode of submission.

Who is RTI?

RTI International is a nonprofit research institute that works as the data collection agent for the FDCRP. RTI has been supporting BJS's efforts to collect arrest-related and detention or incarceration deaths from state and local law enforcement agencies since 2009. For more information about RTI, visit http://www.rti.org.